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This  book  was  presented  by 


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THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  DATE 
INDICATED  BELOW  AND  IS  SUB- 
JECT TO  AN  OVERDUE  FINE  AS 
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THE  POTATO 


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THE   POTATO 

A  Compilation   of   Information  from  Every 
Available  Source 


BT 

EUGENE  H.  GRUBB 

Mt.   Sopris  Farm,  Carbondale.  Colorado:  Consulting  Apriculturist  for  the 
Twin  Falls  North  Side  Land  and  Water  Company,  Idaho,  and  the 
Sacramento  Valley  Irrig-ation  Company,  California;  Special 
Commissioner  to  Europe  in  Potato  Investigations  for 
the    United   States    Government ;  author  of 
"The  Modern   Delicacy",  "Orchard 
Heating,"  "Farmers'  Bulle- 
tin 386  on  Potatoes." 


AND 

W.  S.   GUILFORD 

Jerome,  Idaho,  and  Willowa,   California  ;   Director  of  Agriculture,  Sacra- 
mento Valley  Irrigation  Company.  California. 


Garden  City  New  Yokk 

DOUBLEDAY,   PAGE    &   COJSIPANY 

1912 


Copyright,  1912,  by 

DOUBLEDAY,    PaGE    &    CoMPANY 

All  rights  reserved,  including  that  of 

translation  into  foreign  languages, 

including  the  Scandinavian. 


W.  C.  Brown,  president  New  York  Central  Lines  —  a  leader  in 

agricultural  j^rogress 


LuLher  Burbaiik,  the  world's  greatest  plant  breeder 


James  Wilson,  Secretary  of  Agriculture 


DEDICATION 

Recognizing  their  valuable,  lasting  and  unselfish  work 
for  American  Agriculture  in  different  fields,  for  the  common 
good,  this  book  is  respectfully  dedicated  to 

James  Wilson 

Secretary  of  Agriculture, 

Luther  Burbank 

The  World's  Greatest  Plant  Breeder. 

W.  C.  Brown 

President,  New  York  Central  Lines. 

Three  men  whose  past  work,  present  achievement,  and 
plans  for  the  future  place  them  high  in  the  list  of  those 
whose  names  live  through  all  time. 


ACKNOWT.EDGMENTS 

The  authors  desire  lo  acknowledge  courtesies  so 
numerous  that  to  enumerate  them  is  not  possible,  from 
potato  growers,  government  and  state  agricultural  authori- 
ties, dealers,  officials  of  transportation  companies  and 
others  interested  in  agricultural  uplift,  both  in  America 
and  Europe.  Every  source  of  information  has  been  drawn 
on,  and  credit  has  been  given  in  the  text  of  the  book 
where  quotations  occur. 

They  also  desire  to  thank  Mr.  Cassius  K.  Michael,  with 
Doubleday,  Page  &  Company,  for  many  valuable  sugges- 
tions as  to  the  compilation  of  the  matter  for  this  book 
and  his  careful  and  conscientious  work  in  editing  and 
preparing  the  copy  for  same. 


AUTHORS'  PREFACE 

It  is  with  the  hope  that  a  compilation  of  in- 
formation in  regard  to  one  of  the  world's  greatest 
food  plants  —  the  potato  —  will  be  of  service  to 
the  increasing  thousands  of  people  now  interested 
and  becoming  interested  in  practical,  scientific 
agriculture,  that  this  work  is  published. 

Never  before  in  the  history  of  the  world  has 
the  production  of  human  food  received  as  great 
attention  as  at  the  present  time.  Population  is 
increasing  with  alarming  rapidity,  while  the  supply 
of  land  on  which  it  is  possible  to  grow  food  is 
limited.  The  one  solution  of  the  problem  is  the 
production  of  more  and  better  food  on  every  acre 
of  land  on  which  crops  are  grown. 

The  working  out  of  this  problem  calls  for  broad, 
liberal  education,  not  the  least  factor  of  which  is 
to  benefit  by  the  experience  of  others.  This  has 
been  made  a  keynote  in  this  work,  and  while 
growers  may  not  see  fit  to  adopt  wholly  some  of 
the  methods  described,  it  is  believed  that  they 
will  find  the  suggestions  helpful. 

The  senior  author  has  grown  a  large  acreage  of 
potatoes  at  Mt.  Sopris  Farm  for  years,  and  has 
made  a  careful  study  of  the  practical  side  of  potato 
growing  all  over  the  world.  The  discussion  of 
problems,  and  the  suggestions  made,  are  from  the 
standpoint  of  the  practical  grower. 

E.  H.  Grubb. 
W.  S.  Guilford. 
March,  1912. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 

PAGE 

I 

Importance  of  the  Potato      .          .         • 

3 

II 

The  Potato  as  Food       .          .          .          . 

7 

III 

Chraatic  Requirements 

17 

IV 

Potato  Soils           .          .          .          .          . 

21 

V 

Drainage      ...... 

28 

VI 

Seed  Slocks  and  Varieties 

37 

VII 

Seed-bed  Preparation  and  Phmting 

7G 

\in 

Cultivation  .                    ... 

95 

IX 

Irrigation      ..... 

101 

X 

Harvesting   ..... 

111 

XI 

Potato  Machinery- 

119 

XII 

Selling  and  Storage 

127 

XIII 

Cost    of    Growing    Potatoes  —  Yield  — 

- 

Prices  —  Profits 

141 

XIV 

Markets  and  Marketing 

154 

XV 

Enemies  of  the  Potato  . 

167 

XVI 

Dming  Cars,  Hotels,  and  Restaurants 

208 

XVII 

Fertilizers     ..... 

210 

XVIII 

The  Farm  Rotation 

221 

XIX 

Early  Potatoes  —  Specialties  . 

224 

XX 

The  Burbank  Potato 

237 

XXI 

The  Sweet  Potato 

241 

XXII 

Legislation    ..... 

254 

XXIII 

Cooking  the  Potato 

261 

XXIV 

Manufactures         .... 

277 

XXV 

Potatoes  and  Potato  Products   as  Stock 

Feed 

303 

CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 

PAGE 

XXVI 

Potatoes   for    Exhibition  —  Score  Cards 

and  Standards  .          .          .         .         . 

311 

XXVII 

Potato  Superstitions  and  Prejudices 

319 

XXVIII 

Recent  Development  in  New  and  Old  Dis- 
tricts        ..... 

.     322 

XXIX 

North  Atlantic  States     . 

.     328 

XXX 

South  Atlantic  and  Gulf  States 

347 

XXXI 

The  Middle  West 

354 

XXXII 

Colorado        ..... 

363 

XXXIII 

Idaho  —  Twin    Falls    County  —  1 

[Jpper 

Snake  River       .... 

382 

XXXIV 

The  Northwest      .... 

396 

XXXV 

California     ..... 

409 

XXXVI 

The  Island  of  Chiloe,  Chile    . 

434 

XXXVII 

Great  Britain         .... 

.     437 

XXXVIII 

The  Channel  Islands     . 

477 

XXXIX 

Ireland          ..... 

486 

XL 

Continent  of  Europe 

489 

XTI 

History 

512 

XLII 

Botany,   Physical    and    Chemical    Com- 

position of  the  Potato 

521 

APPENDIX 

The  World 

s  Food  Problem 

535 

Potato  Statistics       ....... 

540 

Acreage,  Production,  Value,  Prices,  etc.     . 

• 

542 

LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


Field  of  potatoes  on  Mt.  Sopris  Farm  at  Carbondale, 

Colo Frontispiece 

James  Wilson,  Secretary  of  Agriculture  .        .    ^    Preceding 

Luther  Burbank >    Dedication 

W.  C,  Brown,  President  N.  Y.  Central  Lines    )    Page 


FACING  PAGE 


Map  showing  production  of  potatoes  in  the  world 
Graphic  map  showing  production  of  potatoes  in  the 

United  States  , 
Dr.  J.  H.  Kellogg 

Battle  Creek  Sanitarium,  Battle  Creek,  Mich 
Some  potatoes  before  paring 

After  paring 

Chart  showing  origin  of  potato  varieties 

A  Burbank  potato 

Standard  early  varieties     .... 
Standard  late  varieties       .... 
Two  views  of  Iron  Age  cultivator  at  work 
Potato  field  at  Mt.  Sopris  Farm 
Iron  Age  potato  hoe  or  ridger  . 

"       "     riding  cultivator 

"       "     potato  digger      .... 

"      "    traction  sprayer 

"      "     (Improved  Bobbins)  potato  planter 
Seed  pieces  in  place  of  furrows 
Dowden  potato  digger 
Deere  disk  harrow 


cultivator 
potato  digger    . 
two-way  plow  . 
double-action  disk  harrov/ 
shaker  potato  digger 


5 

8 

8 

9 

9 

38 

30 

40 

41 

96 

97 

120 

120 

120 

120 

121 

121 

121 

122 

122 

122 

122 

122 

122 


(< 
(( 
<< 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

FACING  PAGE 

"  Picker "  in  Aspinwall  planter 123 

Aspinwall  two-row  planter 123 

planter  with  fertilizer  attachment        .        .123 

potato  sorter 123 

potato  planter 124 

sprayer      ........  124 

Thompson's  Greeley  potato  sorter 125 

Dowden  potato  digger  at  work  on  Mt.  Sopris  Farm     .  126 

Iron  Age  digger  at  work 126 

Hauling  potatoes  to  storehouse  in  "half -sacks"  —  Mt. 

Sopris  Farm 126 

Iron  Age  planter  at  work 127 

New  potato  cellar  of  Commissioner  of  Agriculture,    A. 

W.  Gilman 130 

Potato  storage  cellar  plan 131 

Wart  disease  of  potatoes 172 

Early  blight 173 

Potato  Scab 173 

Late  blight  —  diseased  leaf  and  tuber  of  potato   .        .178 
Late  blight  —  last  stages  of  disease         .        .        .        .179 

Hill  of  potatoes  partly  diseased  by  dry-rot  (Fusarium)  194 

Various  stages  in  destruction  of  potatoes  by  Fusarium  195 

Rhizoctonia  —  showing  development  of"  little  potatoes"  198 
"            —  showing  stem  of  young  potato  plant 

affected  from  the  seed 199 

The  potato  eelworm,  showing  eggs,  worm  and  infected 

potato 206 

Iron  Age  sprayer  in  operation 207 

E.  L.  Cleveland,  Houlton,  Maine 226 

E.  L.  Cleveland  Co.  potato  storehouse   ....  227 

Carbondale  Peachblow  potatoes  on  exhibition       .        .  312 

An  attractive  English  exhibit  of  potatoes       .        .        .  313 

Map  showing  some  potato  districts  in  the  United  States  322 

D.  E.  Burley  and  C.  H.  Schlaacks 323 

James  J.  Hill 324 

Eugene  H.  Grubb 325 

Mt.  Sopris  and  a  part  of  the  Carbondale  district,  Colo.  .  374 
Lord    Ogilvy,    agricultural    editor    of    Denver    Post, 

Denver,  Colo 375 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

FACING  PAGE 

Potato  digging  near  Twin  Falls 384 

Planet  Jr.  furrower  or  ridger  for  hilling  potatoes   .  384 

Potatoes  near  Jerome 385 

Irrigating  potatoes  near  Wendell 385 

I.  B.  Perrine  and  H.  L.  HoUistcr 386 

Map  showing  districts  in  Great  Britain  where  there  are 

prominent  potato  farms         ...'...  438 

Sir  Matthew  Wallace 442 

Potato  digging  in  Scotland 443 

Potato  field  on  the  farm  of  Matthew  G.  Wallace          .  443 

Mr.  Hannah  and  Mr.  Grubb  in  potato  jBeld  .        .        .  450 

Potato  field  on  Girvan  Mains  farms        ....  450 

Digging  potatoes  at  Girvan  Mains 450 

Garden  on  Girvan  Mains  farms 450 

Buildings  on  Little  Pinmore  farm,  Scotland  .        .        .451 

House  on  Little  Pinmore  farm 451 

Farm  buildings,  Girvan  Mains  farms       .        .        .        .451 

Laborer's  house,  Girvan  Mains 451 

A  party  of  leading  British  farmers 456 

Sutton's  Windsor  Castle 457 

Intensive  British  agriculture  illustrated          .        .        .  458 

W.  Dennis  &  Sons 464 

Potato  storage  house  on  farm  of  W.  Dennis  &  Sons     .  465 

Titus  Kime 470 

Northern  Star  potatoes  grown  by  Titus  Kime       .        .  470 

Half  acre  challenge  plot  of  Northern  Star  potatoes      .  471 

Harvesting  early  potatoes  on  the  Island  of  Jersey        .  478 

Oats  on  the  Island  of  Jersey 478 

Plow  for  very  deep  plowing  used  in  the  Island  of  Jersey  478 

Sutton's  Ninety-fold  potatoes 479 

Composition  of  the  potato 524 

Transverse  and  longitudinal  sections  of  the  potato      .  525 


THE  POTATO 


CHAPTER  I 

IMPORTANCE    OF    THE    POTATO 

DURING  the  season  of  1911-1912  the  United 
States  has  imported  large  quantities  of 
potatoes  from  Europe.  The  crop  of  1911 
was  a  good  many  milhon  bushels  short  of  the 
needs  of  the  nation. 

This  situation  causes  the  thoughtful  student  of 
the  food  problem  to  ask  why  we  do  not  grow  more 
potatoes.  Have  we  not  a  suflScient  area  suited 
to  the  crop.'^  or  is  the  average  production  per  acre 
too  low,  and  if  so,  can  it  be  increased? 

A  potato  shortage  is  apt  to  result  in  this 
country  any  year  that  weather  or  soil  condi- 
tions are  unfavorable  in  our  principal  producing 
districts. 

We  can  and  must  grow  more  and  better  po- 
tatoes. There  are  good  undeveloped  districts 
that  can  produce  a  large  tonnage,  and  by  better 
methods  of  propagation  and  cultivation  the  yield 
on  areas  now  in  the  crop  can  be  very  greatly  in- 
creased. 

The  potato  comprises  about  25  per  cent,  of 
the  food  of  European  and  English-speaking 
people.  Only  the  Oriental  races  exist  without 
it.  If  the  potato  crop  of  Europe  should  fail, 
famine  would  result,  as  it  did  in  Ireland  between 
1840  and  1850.  More  pounds  of  the  potato  are 
produced  than  of  any  other  food  crop  in  the 
world. 

3 


4  THE  POTATO 

The  number  of  pounds  of  food  produced  to  t*he 
acre  in  the  potato  crop  is  large,  as  compared  with 
some  other  crops.  In  a  90-bushel  potato  crop 
there  are  5,400  pounds  of  food;  a  14-bushel  wheat 
crop  weighs  only  840  pounds. 

Although  good  yields  are  made  by  some  growers 
in  the  United  States,  the  average  production  is 
only  89.8  bushels  per  acre,  while  in  Germany  the 
average  yield  is  197.3  bushels,  and  in  Great 
Britain  186.4  bushels. 

In  the  United  States  the  average  consumption 
of  potatoes  per  capita  is  between  three  and  four 
bushels.  In  Europe  it  greatly  exceeds  this,  in 
some  sections  being  more  than  twenty -five  bushels. 
The  potato  furnishes  a  cheap,  wholesome  food, 
and  its  use  could  be  considerably  increased  with 
benefit  to  the  race. 

At  the  Battle  Creek  Sanitarium  in  Michigan, 
under  the  direction  of  one  of  the  greatest  food 
experts  in  the  world,  1,000  people  consume  7,000 
bushels  per  year  —  seven  bushels  per  capita. 

The  use  of  the  potato  can  and  will  be  very 
greatly  extended.  In  Europe,  especially  in  Ger- 
many, the  potato  is  largely  used  in  manufacturing 
and  for  stock  food.  The  price  of  gasoline  and 
kerosene  is  kept  down  by  the  low  price  of  spirit 
distilled  from  the  potato.  A  very  high-grade 
glucose,  from  which  confectionery  is  made,  is  a 
potato  product.  It  is  superior  to  grain  glucose. 
Flour  which  is  used  in  all  kinds  of  cooking  is  made 
from  the  potato.  Potato  starch  is  also  made  in 
Germany  and  in  the  United  States. 

It  was  with  the  idea  of  improving  potato  con- 
ditions that  the  senior  author  wrote  the  following 
letter,  dated  December  7,  1908,  to  Secretary  of 
Agriculture  James  Wilson: 


O 


o 


o 
5 


o 


bO 


O 

-a 


Jl^  I  J»l 


POTATOES 

AVERAGE  'ANNUAL 
PRODUCTION 

DEC/IDE  f/a99-/90&J  , 

IN  M/i.i.ib/1/s  or  Bus»£i.s    1 


Graphic  map  showing  production  of  potatoes  in  the  United  States 


THE  POTATO  5 

"It  may  seem  presumptuous  on  my  part  to  sug- 
gest any  remedy  for  the  betterment  of  the  present 
unsatisfactory  conditions  obtaining  in  American 
potato  growing,  but  the  more  I  investigate  the 
subject  of  potato  culture  in  this  country  the  more 
I  am  convinced  of  the  necessity  of  more  thorough 
and  special  knowledge  of  potato  growing  by 
American  farmers,  if  they  are  ever  to  compete 
with  the  vast  influx  of  foreign  potatoes  to  our 
shores.  It  seems  to  me  urgent  that  our  Govern- 
ment exert  itself  to  ameliorate,  in  some  measure 
at  least,  the  present  deplorable  state  of  this  great 
and  vital  industry.  We  should  investigate  the 
causes  whereby  the  foreign  potato  culturists  are 
able  to  so  considerably  exceed  our  own  best  efforts 
of  production,  and  the  diffusion  of  such  informa- 
tion among  our  American  farmers  would  be  in- 
valuable and  certainly  productive  of  the  use  of 
more  intelligent  methods  by  them,  resulting  in  a 
perceptible  increase  in  this  great  food  staple,  to- 
gether with  a  much  needed  improvement  in 
quality. 

"I  am  fully  persuaded  that  we  imperatively  need 
a  more  practical  knowledge  of  seed  growing  and 
seed  selection,  of  growing  special  seed  stocks,  the 
proper  storage  of  seed  stocks  during  the  winter, 
preparation  of  seed  bed  and  cultivation,  bal- 
anced plant  foods  and  fertilization  of  soil.  I 
know  of  no  acquisition  to  agricultural  knowledge 
so  devoutly  to  be  wished,  or  that  would  be  so 
valuable  to  our  farmers. 

*'If  Germany,  with  an  area  not  more  than  twice 
that  of  Colorado,  can  and  does  produce  fully  two 
biUion  bushels  of  potatoes  annually,  and  the 
United  States,  in  its  entirety,  a  meagre  two  hun- 
dred  and   seventy-five   million   bushels   annually 


6  THE  POTATO 

(which  latter  Is  vastly  overestimated) ,  we  ought  to 
know  what  it  is  that  produces  such  marvellous 
results  on  foreign  soils,  which  have  been  cropped 
for  a  thousand  years." 

Since  this  letter  was  written  the  senior  author 
has  carefully  studied  the  European  potato  situ- 
ation, and  the  results  of  his  investigations  are 
incorporated  in  the  chapters  which  follow,  being 
given  in  detail  in  chapters  XXXVII,  XXXVIII, 
XXXIX  and  XL. 

The  attention  that  is  given  to  this  matter  abroad, 
and  the  esteem  in  which  it  is  held,  are  shown  by 
the  following  extract  from  a  very  able  address 
by  David  Young,  editor  of  the  North  British 
Agriculturist,  Edinburgh,  Scotland,  entitled  "The 
Potato  Crop."     He  says: 


til 


The  potato  crop  is  one  of  the  most  important 
of  all  in  the  rural  economy  of  the  United  Kingdom. 
The  potato  is  an  esculent  which  is  largely  used  and 
highly  relished  as  an  article  of  diet  by  rich  and 
poor  alike.  The  very  poorest  of  the  population 
find  it  one  of  the  cheapest  forms  of  sustenance  they 
can  obtain,  and  no  well-ordered  banquet,  however 
sumptuous,  would  be  considered  complete  without 
the  roti-boeuf  and  the  poulet  being  flanked  by  the 
pommes  de  terre. 

"The  potato  crop  is  practically  the  one  farm 
crop  grown  primarily  for  human  food  of  which  the 
United  Kingdom  can  in  ordinarily  favorable  sea- 
sons supply  the  wants  of  its  teeming  population." 


CHAPTER  II 

THE    POTATO    AS    FOOD 

DEFINITE    knowledge    in    regard    to,  the 
world's  greatest  food  crop  is  very  meagre. 
This  is  true  not  only  of  the  mass  of  con- 
sumers, but  even  doctors  and  cooks,  who  should 
be  well  informed  on  every  subject  pertaining  to 
food. 

One  of  the  greatest  authorities  on  food  in  the 
world  is  Dr.  J.  H.  Kellogg,  superintendent  of  the 
Battle  Creek  Sanitarium,  Battle  Creek,  Mich. 
He  has  spent  a  lifetime  in  the  study  of  the  vari- 
ous articles  of  food,  his  investigations  covering 
all  possible  sources  of  information,  not  only  in 
America,  but  in  Europe.  The  following  article  on 
''The  Special  Dietetic  Virtues  of  the  Potato, '**  by 
this  foremost  authority,  is  one  of  the  best  ever 
written  about  the  potato: 

"Soon  after  the  potato  was  introduced  into 
Europe  in  the  sixteenth  century  the  ridiculous 
notion  somehow  got  afloat  that  the  use  of  the  po- 
tato was  the  cause  of  leprosy,  which  at  that  time 
was  quite  prevalent  in  most  European  countries. 
The  prejudice  which  was  thus  created  against  this 
most  valuable  of  all  garden  vegetables  has  never 
been  quite  overcome.  Various  malicious  libels 
against  the  good  name  of  this  most  innocent  and 
wholesome  of  foodstuffs  are  still  afloat.  Mul- 
titudes believe  the  potato  to  be  difficult  of  di- 


8  THE  POTATO 

gestion.  Even  physicians  often  prohibit  its  use 
on  the  supposition  that  it  is  Hkely  to  ferment  in 
the  stomach  —  a  mistaken  notion,  as  the  writer 
will  show.  The  belief  is  quite  general  that  the 
potato  especially  promotes  fat-making,  and  hence 
that  its  use  must  be  avoided  by  persons  who  have 
a  tendency  to  obesity.  This  is  also  an  error.  All 
foods  tend  to  produce  obesity  when  taken  in  ex- 
cessive quantity;  that  is,  more  than  the  individual 
needs  to  maintain  his  nutrition  on  equilibrium. 
No  foods  produce  excess  of  fat  when  limited  in 
quantity  to  actual  daily  bodily  needs. 

"The  potato  is  truly  a  most  remarkable  product. 
It  contains  within  its  aseptic  covering  a  rich  store 
of  one  of  the  most  easily  digestible  of  all  forms  of 
starch.  The  observations  of  Mosse,  Von  Noorden 
and  others  have  shown  most  conclusively  that  the 
starch  of  the  potato  is  more  easily  digested  and  ap- 
propriated by  the  body  than  the  starches  of  wheat, 
corn,  and  most  other  cereals.  In  laboratory  tests 
made  by  the  writer  it  was  found  that  potato  starch 
digested  in  less  than  one  sixth  of  the  time  of  cereal 
starches.  The  experience  of  hundreds  of  phy- 
sicians in  the  treatment  of  diabetics  has  shown 
that  in  many  cases  the  starch  of  the  potato  is 
more  easily  assimilated  or  better  utilized  than 
other  forms  of  starch. 

"Potato  gruel  made  from  specially  prepared 
potato  meal  or  the  pulp  of  baked  potatoes  has 
been  found  in  Germany  of  very  great  service  in 
the  feeding  of  infants  and  invalids.  Potato  starch 
is  far  better  for  this  purpose  than  cornstarch,  arrow- 
root and  similar  substances  which  are  pure  starch 
and  cannot  be  properly  considered  as  foods.  The 
long  continued  use  of  these  starches  in  the  feeding 
of  young  infants  often  results  most  disastrously. 


DR.  J.  H.  KELliKiG 


Baltic    Crock    Sanilaiiuiu.    Battle    Crock     Mich. 


#: 


M- 


Illustration  shows  desirable  and  undesirable  types  of  pota- 
toes before  paring 


\ 


< 


-^ 


Same  potatoes  after  paring.  At  the  left  is  shown  Dalmeny 
Challenge  potato.  The  unpared  tuber  weighed  13.4  oz.  and  the 
parings  1.7  oz.  or  12.6  per  cent.  In  the  centre  is  shown  the  Mc- 
Cormick  potato.  The  unpared  tuber  weighed  13.9  oz.,  and  the 
parings  3.2  oz.,  or  23.2  per  cent.  At  the  right  is  shown  Red 
Peachblow  potato.  The  unpared  tuber  weighed  9.5  oz.,  and  the 
parings  1.2  oz.,  or  12.4  per  cent. 


THE  POTATO  9 

"The  potato  is  not  only  an  easily  digestible 
foodstuff  but  possesses  much  higher  nutritive 
value  than  is  generally  supposed.  According  to 
Gautier,  about  one  fourth  of  the  weight  of  the 
potato  is  food  substance,  consisting  chiefly  (nine 
elevenths)  of  starch.  Of  the  remainder,  three 
fifths  are  protein,  the  tissue-building  element,  and 
two  fifths  alkaline  salts  in  combination  with  citric 
and  malic  acids,  the  acids  of  the  lemon  and  the 
apple. 

"From  a  dietetic  standpoint,  the  potato  is  per- 
haps slightly  deficient  in  protein,  though  this 
statement  would  be  disj^uted  by  some  physiolo- 
gists whose  experiments  appear  to  demonstrate 
that  the  amount  of  protein  contained  in  the  po- 
tato is  quite  sufficient  for  ordinary  bodily  needs. 

"The  potato  is  certainly  deficient  in  fats,  of 
which  it  contains  almost  none,  because  of  the  fact 
that  it  is  not,  like  so  many  of  our  vegetable  foods,  a 
seed,  but  a  curiously  modified  and  enormously 
fleshy  tuber.  This  deficiency  in  fat  must  always 
be  remembered  in  the  use  of  the  potato,  and  the 
lack  must  be  made  up  by  the  addition  of  cream, 
butter,  or  some  other  foodstuff  rich  in  fat. 

"What  the  potato  lacks  in  fat  and  protein,  how- 
ever, it  makes  up  in  salts,  which  constitute  nearly 
5  per  cent,  of  its  dry  substance  and  are  perhaps  its 
most  characteristic  quality  from  a  dietetic  stand- 
point and  one  of  its  chief  excellences.  These  salts 
consist  chiefly  of  potash,  and  in  the  ordinary  form 
in  which  they  are  supplied  do  a  most  important 
service  in  maintaining  the  alkaline  condition  of  the 
blood,  which  is  essential  to  good  health  and  re- 
sistance to  disease.  Meats  contain  a  very  great 
excess  of  acid-forming  elements  and  tend  to  acidify 
the  blood.     Cereals  have  some  tendency  in  the 


10  THE  POTATO 

same  direction.  The  lowering  of  the  alkalinity 
of  the  blood  by  acid-forming  foods,  especially  by 
the  free  use  of  meat,  is  unquestionably  one 
of  the  chief  causes  of  the  rapid  increase  in  chronic 
diseases,  the  mortality  from  which  has  doubled 
within  thirty  years,  causing  a  loss  annually  of 
350,000  more  lives  than  would  occur  if  the  aver- 
age citizen  was  as  healthy  as  he  was  thirty  years 
ago.  This  is  probably  also  one  of  the  chief  causes 
of  arteriosclerosis,  or  hardening  of  the  arteries, 
gout,  rheumatism,  Bright's  disease,  apoplexy,  and 
other  degenerative  maladies.  The  alkaline  salts 
of  vegetables  are  needed  to  balance  the  dietary.  If 
the  consumption  of  potatoes  in  this  country  could 
be  quadrupled,  the  result  would  undoubtedly  be 
the  saving  of  many  thousands  of  lives  annually  and 
an  incalculable  amount  of  suffering  from  disease. 

*'The  great  nutritive  value  of  the  potato,  not- 
withstanding the  fact  that  it  is  three  fourths 
water,  may  be  best  shown  by  comparing  it  wuth 
other  known  foods.  A  study  of  the  nutritive 
value  of  various  common  foodstuffs  shows  that 
one  pound  of  baked  potato  is  equivalent  in  total 
nutritive  value  to  the  quantities  of  various  foods 
shown  in  the  following  table: 

Food   Equivalent   in  Total    Food   Value   to   One   Pound    of 

Baked  Potato 

1^  pounds  of  boiled  potato 

5|  ounces  boiled  beef 

I  pound  of  chicken 
1§  pounds  of  codfish 

2j  pints  of  oysters  (solids) 

4  pints  of  clams  (in  shell) 

4|  pints  of  beef  juice 

10  pints  bouillon  or  beef  tea 

II  pints  whole  milk 


THE  POTATO  11 

3  pints  skimmed  milk 

8  eggs 

9  ounces  baked  beans 
7  ounces  bread 

If  pints  oatmeal  or  corn  meal  mush 

Ig  pints  hominy  (cooked) 

1  pint  boiled  rice 

1  pound  of  bananas 

2  pounds  parsnips  (cooked) 

1       pound  green  peas  (cooked) 

3  pounds  beets  (cooked) 

4  pounds  boiled  cabbage 

4  pounds  radishes 

5  pounds  tomatoes 

5       pounds  turnips  (cooked) 
6^     pounds  cucumbers 

"From  the  above  table  it  will  readily  appear 
that  the  potato  is  one  of  the  most  nourishing  of 
our  common  foods.  Its  value  is  still  further 
emphasized  by  the  fact  that  steamed  or  mashed 
potato  digests  in  two  or  three  hours,  whereas  roast 
beef  requires  four  to  five  hours,  or  double  the  time 
(Gautier). 

"As  already  noted,  the  potato  is  not  rich  in 
protein,  although  the  amount  of  this  element  in  the 
baked  potato  reaches  the  Chittenden  standard 
of  10  per  cent,  of  the  total  nutritive  value,  a  pro- 
portion which  in  feeding  many  thousands  of  per- 
sons, those  in  health  as  well  as  invalids,  at  the 
Battle  Creek  Sanitarium,  we  have  found  amply 
sufficient.  The  writer  adopted  personally  a  very 
low  protein  standard  in  early  life  and  has  adhered 
to  it  for  more  than  forty -six  years,  and  with  great 
benefit.  Nevertheless,  if  a  larger  amount  of  pro- 
tein is  required,  it  may  easily  be  obtained  by 
the  addition  of  milk  or  eggs,  substances  which 
while  increasing  the  proportion  of  protein  also 
add  the  fat  necessary  to  render  the  potato  a  com- 


12  THE  POTATO 

plete  food.  Half  a  pint  of  rich  milk  will  thus 
balance  a  pound  of  baked  potato;  or  an  equally 
good  balance  may  be  made  by  adding  to  a  pound 
of  potato  two  ounces  of  white  bread  (two  ordinary 
slices)  and  an  ounce  of  butter. 

"Bunge,  the  world's  greatest  authority  on  the 
chemistry  of  foods,  has  called  special  attention  to 
the  importance  of  the  alkaline  salts  that  are  found 
in  vegetables,  and  in  a  much  larger  proportion  in 
the  potato  than  in  any  other  vegetable  used  as  food, 
the  potato  containing  nearly  forty  times  as  much 
of  this  useful  element  as  some  cereal  foods.  No 
farmer  would  think  of  feeding  his  horses  or  cattle 
on  grain  alone.  Cereals  of  all  sorts  contain  a  con- 
siderable excess  of  acid-forming  elements.  Grass 
and  herbage  of  all  sorts,  as  well  as  fresh  vegetables, 
contain  an  abundance  of  alkaline  salts,  and  hence 
are  a  necessary  part  of  the  diet  of  animals.  Human 
beings,  as  Bunge  has  clearly  shown,  require  such 
vegetables  for  the  same  reason,  and  the  potato  is 
the  most  valuable  of  all  known  foods  as  a  source 
of  these  essential  elements.  This  is  perhaps  the 
reason  why  the  potato  is  an  almost  invariable 
accompaniment  of  meat  dishes.  Meat  contains 
an  enormous  excess  of  acid-forming  substances, 
which  are  to  some  extent  neutralized  and  anti- 
doted  by  the  basic  salts  of  the  potato. 

"Graham  bread  with  butter,  or  beans  with  but- 
ter, however,  are  much  better  combinations  with 
potato  than  meat,  for  the  reason  that  both  meat 
and  potato  are  lacking  in  lime.  The  body  requires 
about  thirteen  grains  of  lime  a  day.  Meat  con- 
tains but  half  a  grain  of  lime  to  the  pound.  The 
potato  contains  only  about  a  grain  and  a  half  to 
the  pound.  Wheat  flakes  and  other  whole  wheat 
preparations  contain  four  grains  of  lime  to  the 


THE  POTATO  13 

pound,  and  pciis  and  beans  contain  eight  grains 
of  lime  to  the  pound.  Cow's  milk  contains  four- 
teen grains  of  lime  to  the  pint.  The  American 
people  are  losing  their  teeth,  and  hone  diseases 
are  increasing,  as  a  result  of  this  deficiency  of 
lime.  Professor  Sherman  of  Columbia  University 
declares  that  half  the  people  of  the  United  States 
are  suffering  from  lime  starvation.  This  is  in  part 
because  of  the  meat  diet  and  free  use  of  cane  sugar. 
Less  meat,  a  larger  proportion  of  potatoes,  com- 
bined with  wheat  preparations  and  other  cereals, 
beans,  peas,  and  cow's  milk  would  help  to  check 
this  degenerative  tendency. 

THE  POTATO  AS  A  FOOD  REMEDY 

*'The  potato  is  of  immense  service  as  a  food 
remedy  in  the  treatment  of  a  large  number  of  dis- 
eases. It  is  especially  valuable  in  cases  of  chronic 
intestinal  auto-intoxication  or  'biliousness.'  It 
affords  bulk  for  the  intestine  to  act  upon,  and  so 
antagonizes  constipation.  The  large  proportion 
of  starch  and  other  carbohydrates  encourages  the 
growth  of  friendly  bacteria  in  the  intestine,  thus 
preventing  putrefaction.  For  the  same  reason 
the  free  use  of  potatoes  combats  rheumatism  and 
gout,  which  are  results  of  chronic  intestinal  poi- 
soning. 

*'Tlie  potato  is  valuable  in  the  treatment  of 
anemia,  because  it  combats  the  growth  in  the 
intestine  of  the  germs  which  produce  blood- 
destroying  poisons.  The  death  rate  from  diabetes, 
according  to  the  mortality  statistics  of  the  United 
States  Census  Bureau,  has  increased  nearly  50 
per  cent,  in  ten  years.  The  freer  use  of  potatoes 
as  an  article  of  diet  and  the  lessened  consumption 


14  THE  POTATO 

of  meat  would  perhaps  do  more  than  any  other 
one  thing  to  suppress  the  alarming  increase  of  this 
fatal  malady. 

"Arteriosclerosis,  or  hardening  of  the  arteries, 
a  disease  which  causes  apoplexy  and  is  associated 
with  Bright 's  disease  and  various  forms  of  heart 
disease  besides  being  the  cause  of  premature  old 
age,  is  most  often  directly  the  result  of  chronic 
poisoning,  the  source  of  which  is  the  putrefaction 
of  undigested  remnants  of  animal  substances 
which  have  been  eaten,  which  undergo  decay  with 
the  absorption  of  poisonous  products.  The  free  use 
of  the  potato  as  an  article  of  diet  in  place  of  the 
excessive  consumption  of  meat  and  fish,  a  prac- 
tice widely  prevalent,  would  unquestionably  check 
the  alarmingly  rapid  development  of  this  disease, 
which,  according  to  the  United  States  mortality 
reports,  has  increased  400  per  cent,  in  the  last  ten 
years. 

"The  potato,  buttermilk,  and  oatmeal  diet  of 
the  Irish  has  developed  one  of  the  most  sturdy  and 
enduring  races  of  men  to  be  found  anywhere.  The 
proportion  of  centenarians  in  Ireland  is  more  than 
ten  times  as  great  as  in  England.  There  can  be 
no  doubt  that  the  free  use  of  potatoes  by  the  Irish 
is  in  large  measure  responsible  for  the  remarkable 
longevity  of  this  nation. 

"The  idea  that  the  potato  is  difiicult  of  diges- 
tion and  thus  gives  rise  to  fermentation  in  the 
stomach  is  entirely  erroneous.  The  fault  is  not 
with  the  potato  but  with  the  manner  of  eating. 
When  acted  upon  by  the  sahva,  the  starch  of  the 
potato  is  converted  into  maltose  and  dextrin, 
which  Pawlow  of  St.  Petersburg  has  shown  to  be 
powerful  stimulants  of  the  glands  of  the  stomach. 
Properly  cooked  and  well  chewed,  the  potato  is 


THE  POTATO  15 

thus  not  only  a  good  food  but  an  aid  to  the  di- 
gestion of  other  foods.  In  persons  whose  stom- 
achs have  a  tendency  to  produce  excessive  acid 
the  stimulating  effect  of  the  potato  may  be  so 
great  as  to  produce  the  symptoms  characteristic 
of  hyperacidity,  heartburn,  tenderness  of  the 
stomach,  regurgitation  of  gas  with  acid  liquid, 
and  other  well-know^n  symptoms.  This  difficulty 
is  not  at  all  due  to  fermentation  but  to  an  exces- 
sive amount  of  acid  and  the  resulting  spasmodic 
contraction  of  the  pylorus,  so  the  stomach  is 
stimulated  to  violent  contraction.  The  gas  con- 
tained in  the  stomach  cannot  be  forced  downward 
in  the  proper  direction,  and  so  escapes  upward. 
This  difficulty  is  not  likely  to  occur,  however, 
except  when  chewing  is  neglected.  The  gastric 
juice  has  little  action  upon  the  potato.  Coarse 
particles  of  potato  may  remain  in  the  stomach 
many  hours,  causing  excessive  acid  fermentation, 
irritation  and  eructations.  In  eating  potato  every 
morsel  must  be  chewed  until  reduced  to  a  smooth 
paste  in  which  no  coarse  particles  can  be  detected 
by  the  tongue. 

"The  remedy  is  simple.  Pawlow  has  shown 
that  fats  lessen  the  activity  of  the  stomach  in  the 
secretion  of  gastric  juice.  Hence,  it  is  only  nec- 
essary to  increase  the  amount  of  fat  eaten  with 
the  potato.  In  extreme  cases  the  potato  should 
be  eaten  in  the  form  of  a  puree  with  the  addition 
of  butter  or  rich  cream.  This  difficulty  is  es- 
pecially noticeable  in  persons  who  have  habitually 
eaten  large  quantities  of  meat  when  they  under- 
take to  change  their  eating  habits,  taking  less 
meat  and  more  cereals  and  potatoes.  With  a 
change  in  eating  habits,  the  unpleasant  symptoms 
usually  disappear  in  a  short  time. 


16  THE  POTATO 

"Some  persons  find  it  necessary  to  avoid  the  use 
of  tomatoes  and  acid  fruits  with  potatoes.  The 
apparent  disagreement  of  the  potato  witli  acid 
fruits  is  chiefly  due  to  neglect  to  thoroughly  mas- 
ticate the  food.  If  tlie  potato  is  eaten  in  the  form 
of  a  puree  or  well  mashed,  and  if  the  fruit  is  also 
in  the  form  of  a  puree,  or  if  pains  is  taken  to  mas- 
ticate it  very  tliorouglily,  inconvenience  from  the 
combination  will  he  rarely,  if  ever,  exi^erienced." 

In  Chapt(n*  XXIII  i  he  potato  as  food  is  discussed 
further  by  Mrs.  K.  II.  (iru})b  and  many  valuable 
recipes  for  preparing  the  potato  for  the  table  are 
given. 


CHAPTER  TTI 

CLI-MATIC    REQUIREMENTS 

THE  potato  grew  wild  and  now  grows  to  pf;r- 
f action  in  southwestorn  Colorado,  in  the 
Jlocky  Mountains,  and  under  similar  con- 
ditions in  the  Andes  Mountains  in  South  Arn(;riea. 

In  these  districts  the  winters  are  cold,  and  the 
ground  is  generally  covered  with  snow  from  early 
fall  —  before  the  ground  freezes  —  until  late  in  the 
spring.  There  is  often  a  heavy  blanket  of  snow 
until  May.  In  the  growing  season  there  are  100 
to  110  days  between  killing  frosts.  During  this 
period  the  nights  are  cool,  but  there  are  twelve  to 
fifteen  hours  of  bright,  intense  sunshine  during  the 
day.  Occasional  light  showers  of  a  few  minutes' 
or  hours'  duration  occur,  but  the  total  summer 
rainfall  is  very  small  in  comparison  to  the  total 
for  the  vear. 

Nothing  but  the  strongest  plants  and  animals 
live  under  these  conditions,  but  such  grow  to  the 
highest  perfection  and  strength.  The  air  is  vital- 
izing and  invigorating.  Vigorous,  healthy  peoj)le 
choose  it,  while  debilitated  people  of  low  vitality 
jjrefer  more  mild  conditions. 

Long  hours  of  bright  sunshine  make  the  potato 
in  its  native  home  free  from  disease;  and  where 
the  tuber  is  grown  imder  less  favorable  conditions 
the  ingenuity  of  man  has  supj>lied  as  nearly  as  pos- 
sible the  things  that  nature  has  furnished  in  the 
Rocky  Mountain  region  referred  to. 

17 


18  THE  POTATO 

At  Prospect  Farm,  at  Redstone,  on  Crystal 
River,  in  the  coal  fields  of  western  Colorado, 
potatoes  were  grown  for  the  camp  during  the  early 
'80 's.  This  farm  was  maintained  for  eight  or  ten 
years,  then  abandoned.  Potatoes  have  grown 
in  this  neglected  field  from  year  to  year  without 
replanting,  ever  since  that  time.  Under  the  con- 
ditions in  this  natural  home  of  the  potato  the 
growth  of  the  plant  is  checked  by  the  frosting  of 
the  haulm,  or  top,  in  the  early  fall.  This  stops  the 
rank,  watery  growth  and  the  tuber  ripens  in  the 
dry  soil.  This  growth  checking  seems  an  essen- 
tial in  the  growing  of  the  highest  class  product, 
and  where  frost  does  not  come  in  time  the  same 
effect  has  been  secured  by  mowing  off  the  tops. 

Since  potatoes  have  been  grown  commercially 
under  similar  conditions  to  those  in  the  home  of 
the  wild  potato,  it  has  been  found  that  varieties 
last  longer  there  without  "running  out"  or  "chang- 
ing seed."  Old  varieties  that  have  become  less 
valuable  each  year  in  other  districts  are  revitalized 
and  restored  to  their  original  perfection  when 
planted  there.  The  places  referred  to  are  the 
Carbondale  district  in  Colorado;  the  Twin  Falls 
country  and  other  sections  along  Snake  River  in 
Idaho;  and  an  instance  of  this  reinvigoration  is 
the  success  of  the  "Perfect  Peachblow"  at  Mt. 
Sopris  Farm,  Carbondale,  Col.  At  Dalmeny  Farms, 
Edinburgh,  Scotland,  conditions  are  similar  in 
some  particulars,  and  potatoes  live  over  winter  in 
the  ground  and  produce  crops  the  next  year. 

While  the  potato  grows  best  and  with  the  least 
care  from  man  in  its  native  habitat,  it  has  been 
adapted  to  a  wide  range  of  climatic  conditions. 
It  is  successfully  grown  in  practically  every  coun- 
try in  the  temperate  zone  and  in  some  places  under 


THE  POTATO  19 

very  unfavorable  conditions.  The  potato  cul- 
turists  of  Europe  have  originated  and  adopted 
cultural  methods  and  moulded  varieties  to  con- 
ditions in  a  most  scientific,  skilful,  and  practical 
way.  Potatoes  are  grown  successfully  on  shifting 
sands  so  light  that  they  are  thatched  with  straw 
to  keep  the  soil  from  blowing  away,  and  on  clay 
lands  so  heavy  that  they  require  close  tiling 
(underdraining  with  tiles  forty  to  sixty  feet  apart) 
and  the  most   careful,  watchful  cultural  methods. 

It  is  true  that  there  is  no  place  in  the  temperate 
zone  where  potatoes  cannot  be  grown  by  adding 
artificially  to  the  natural  conditions  those  things 
necessary  to  make  the  soil  and  climate  approach  the 
natural  environment.  It  necessarily  follows,  how- 
ever, that  in  selecting  a  place  to  grow  potatoes  under 
ideal  conditions  some  of  the  mountain  valleys  of 
the  Rocky  or  Andes  Mountains  would  be  chosen, 
other  things  being  equal.  Latitude  and  altitude 
are  synonomous  as  far  as  they  relate  to  potato 
conditions  when  other  requirements  are  the  same. 
There  are  good  districts  north  at  low^  altitudes 
and  good  potatoes  grown  at  high  altitudes  south 
or  at  low  altitudes  south  at  sea  level  where  nights 
are  cool  and  the  air  is  moist. 

Maine,  New  York,  Michigan,  "Wisconsin,  and 
Minnesota  are  examples  of  low  altitudes  north, 
the  Snake  River  country,  the  Greeley  and  Car- 
bondale  districts  of  high  altitudes  south,  and 
Santa  Rosa,  Lompoc,  and  Salinas  on  the  Pacific 
coast  in  California,  and  southern  Great  Britain 
and  the  Channel  Islands  of  low  altitudes  at  sea 
level. 

These  statements  as  regards  north  and  south 
refer  to  the  north  temperate  zone  and  would  be 
reversed  for  the  south  temperate  zone. 


20  THE  POTATO 

The  sweet  potato  is  another  consideration  and 
is  described  in  another  chapter. 

It  is  possible  that  the  change  in  temperature 
each  day,  which  approximates  30  to  50  degrees, 
has  something  to  do  with  the  vitahzing  of  plants, 
the  same  as  man  is  apparently  invigorated  and 
restored  daily  in  these  mountain  districts  where 
such  changes  occur. 


CHAPTER  IV 

POTATO    SOILS 

DRAINAGE  is  the  most  important  requisite 
in  a  potato  soil.  It  must  either  be  present 
naturally  or  supplied  artificially. 

So  important  is  this  subject  considered  that  a 
chapter  on  tile  drainage  is  being  included  (Chap- 
ter V). 

As  in  the  subject  of  climatic  requirements, 
much  regarding  the  soil  requirements  of  the  potato 
may  be  learned  from  a  study  of  the  soil  conditions 
in  the  home  of  the  wild  potato.  In  its  native 
habitat  the  potato  grows  in  loose,  friable,  well- 
drained,  easily  worked,  perfectly  aerated  soil. 

The  physical  or  mechanical  condition  of  a  po- 
tato soil  is  a  more  important  factor  than  the  fer- 
tility, although  any  plant  requires  a  rich  soil  for 
its  greatest  development. 

For  the  uniform,  perfect  development  of  all 
parts  of  the  potato  plant  there  must  be  a  constant 
supply  of  air  and  oxygen,  moisture  and  fertility. 
It  is  impossible  to  grow  good  potatoes  in  a  water- 
logged soil. 

Where  soils  are  infected  with  disease  it  is  found 
beneficial  to  turn  out  the  furrow  in  which  the  po- 
tatoes are  to  be  planted,  allowing  the  sun  and  air 
free  access  to  it.  European  growers  who  practise 
this  believe  that  they  lessen  liability  to  infection. 

In  the  Twin  Falls  country  in  southern  Idaho  — 
one  of  the  best  potato  growing  sections  in  the  world 

21 


22  THE  POTATO 

—  the  soil  is  called  lava  ash,  is  very  mellow  and 
friable,  does  not  bake,  can  be  worked  at  almost 
any  time  in  the  year,  is  rich  and  well  drained 
both  by  a  natural  slope  and  by  deep  coulees  run- 
ning through  it  to  Snake  River. 

At  Greeley,  Col.,  some  of  the  soil  in  which 
potatoes  are  grown  is  a  medium  desert  loam, 
drained  by  an  underlying  strata  of  coarse  gravel ; 
other  soils  are  heavier. 

The  soils  at  Carbondale  are  a  reddish  granite 
formation  and  very  mellow.  The  country  is  very 
steep.  It  is  drained  by  the  Crystal  River,  a 
rushing  mountain  stream  with  an  abrupt  fall. 
This  gives  ample  drainage  to  the  more  level  mesa 
or  table  lands  on  which  potatoes  are  grown. 

In  Wisconsin,  Michigan,  and  other  Middle  West- 
ern States  many  of  the  best  potatoes  are  grown  on 
river  sands  and  sandy  loams  —  soils  that  are  very 
well  drained  naturally. 

In  the  Salinas  and  Lompoc  districts  in  Cali- 
fornia the  best  potato  soils  are  friable,  sandy 
loams. 

In  Aroostook  County,  Maine,  the  soil  is  rolling, 
well  drained,  of  lime-shale  formation,  and  easily 
worked  at  all  times. 

Large  quantities  of  potatoes  are  now  being 
grown  in  the  Red  River  Valley,  in  Minnesota  and 
North  Dakota,  on  the  big  grain  farms.  The  soil 
is  a  rich  alluvial  deposit. 

Potatoes  are  grown  on  well-drained  sandy  soils 
in  Great  Britain,  but  also  on  heavier  soils  per- 
fectly drained.  The  soil  in  some  places  in  Europe 
has  been  made  suitable  to  the  crop,  even  when  not 
naturally  so.  There  are  places  where  sand  to  a 
depth  of  five  inches  has  been  hauled  on  and  incor- 
porated with  heavy  clay.     Other  heavy  soils  are 


THE  POTATO  23 

kept  filled  with  humus  by  cover  cropping  and  the 
use  of  barnyard  manures. 

These  experiences  show  that  districts  not  gen- 
erally considered  capable  of  growing  potatoes  — 
like  the  territory  around  Denver  and  some  parts  of 
California  —  can  be  made  to  produce  the  crop  if 
proper  methods  of  soil  treatment  are  used. 

The  opinions  of  various  authorities  as  regards 
potato  soils  are  very  interesting*,  because  each  is 
based  on  local  conditions  and  experience.  While 
there  may  seem  to  be  differences  of  opinion,  all 
really  agree  on  the  essentials  —  drainage,  aeration, 
and  easily  worked,  mellow,  porous  soils. 

Wm.  D.  Hurd,  of  the  University  of  Maine,  says: 

"In  its  native  state  the  potato  is  found  growing 
on  high,  dry  plateaus.  One  of  the  first  essentials 
then  is  a  well-drained  soil.  The  kind  of  soil  and 
proper  drainage  influence  yield,  cooking  quality, 
liability  to  disease,  and  keeping  quality  of  the 
tubers.  'Virgin  soils'  grow  potato  crops  of  the 
finest  quality  because  they  are  usually  free  from 
diseases  which  affect  the  crop  and  have  an  abini- 
dance  of  organic  matter  and  available  plant  food. 
The  most  desirable  potato  soil  is  a  deep,  free,  easy 
working  loam.  Loams  which  are  inclined  to  be 
sandy  are  usually  too  poor  in  plant  food  and  dry 
out  readily,  while  those  inclined  to  clay  may  be 
too  hard  and  apt  to  retain  too  much  moisture. 
A  proper  supply  of  humus  is  very  important  in 
potato  growling.  The  humus  content  determines 
to  a  great  degree  the  moisture  content  of  the  soil. 
The  potato  is  a  crop  which  uses  considerable 
water  in  making  its  growth.  Much  moisture  is, 
of  course,  lost  by  evaporation  from  the  soil,  but 
aside  from  this  it  is  estimated  that  a  yield  of  225 


24  THE  POTATO 

bushels  of  potatoes  to  the  acre  takes  1,420,000 
pounds  of  moisture  from  the  soil.  Unless  humus 
has  been  supplied  in  the  application  of  stable 
manure  to  previous  crops,  green  crops  such  as 
rye,  oats,  clover,  etc.,  should  be  turned  in  to 
supply  this." 

David  Young,  editor  of  the  North  British  Agri- 
culturist, Glasgow,  Scotland,  says : 

"The  potato  crop  is  not  at  all  fastidious  as  to 
the  soil  in  which  it  is  grown,  provided  the  soil  be 
properly  cultivated  and  manured,  and  in  practically 
all  classes  of  soil,  excepting  the  stiffest  clays,  this 
crop  may  be  successfully  grown." 

Professor  A.  R.  Kohler,  Assistant  in  Horti- 
culture, University  of  Miimesota,  in  "Bulletin 
114,"  says: 

"A  sandy  loam  soil  usually  produces  potatoes 
of  better  quality  than  a  heavier  soil  does.  It 
also  has  the  advantage  of  remaining  in  a  more 
mellow  condition  during  the  growing  season, 
thus  giving  the  tubers  a  chance  to  become  more 
shapely,  and  making  it  easier  to  dig  the  crop. 
A  heavier  soil  will  sometimes  produce  a  larger  yield 
because  it  is  often  more  fertile,  but  brown  rot  of 
the  tubers  is  apt  to  be  worse  on  such  soils.  New 
land  is  the  best  for  large  yields,  or  sod  land  which 
has  been  in  clover  or  meadow.  Sod  land  is  some- 
times infested  with  white  grubs  and  wire  worms 
which  may  do  much  damage.  These  pests  are 
not  likely  to  be  present  in  sufficient  numbers  to 
do  very  extensive  injury  unless  the  land  has  been 
sod  for  some  years." 


THE  POTATO  25 

In  a  treatise  on  "Early  Potato  Growing"  for 
the  Department  of  Agriculture  and  Teelinical  In- 
struction for  Ireland,  Matthew  G.  Wallace  says: 

"Soils  have  considerable  influence  on  earliness. 
Sandy  loams  are  best,  red  or  gray.  It  is  wonderful 
what  can  be  done  even  with  poor  sand  under  favor- 
able circumstances  and  with  generous  treatment. 
Here  again  Rush  (a  district)  may  be  cited.  Much 
of  the  soil  there  appears  to  be  drifting  sand,  and 
farmers  have  to  resort  to  an  expedient  of  lacing  it 
with  straw  and  seaweed  to  keep  it  from  blowing 
away  and  laying  bare  the  potato  sets.  Still  it 
bears  good  crops  of  potatoes.  Black  lands,  or  bogs, 
are  not  suitable  for  early  potatoes,  as  the  frost 
seems  to  grip  more  keenly  there,  and,  besides,  the 
sample  is  not  so  nice,  nor  is  the  quality  so  good." 


Walter   P.  Wright    and    Edward   J.  Castle,  in 
Pictorial  Practical  Potato  Growing,"  say: 


"Potato  soil  is  a  loam  w^ith  an  inclination  to 
heaviness  rather  than  sandiness,  but  cultivation 
will  do  much  to  bring  either  a  clay  or  a  sandy  loam 
into  line." 

Organic  matter,  or  humus,  is  a  great  factor  in 
potato  soils.  It  tends  to  hold  light,  drifting  soils 
and  makes  them  more  retentive  of  moisture. 

When  properly  worked,  loams,  sandy  soils, 
alluvial  silt  soils,  lava  ash  soils,  granite  soils, 
limestone  soils,  and  many  others  are  good  for 
potatoes. 

The  following  by  Lord  Ogilvy,  from  the  Denver 
(Col.)  Post,  is  interesting  to  the  student  of  potato 
soils: 


26  THE  POTATO 

"A  Greeley  farmer  said  the  other  day  that  his 
soil  was  a  good  one,  especially  for  potatoes,  if  he 
kept  it  built  up  so  that  it  would  not  blow.  This 
soil,  twenty  years  ago,  was  considered  about  worth- 
less, except  to  grow  alfalfa,  and  there  was  con- 
siderable difficulty  in  securing  a  stand.  Even  in 
this  unfavorable  season  (1910)  the  output  of  pota- 
toes is  125  sacks  to  the  acre. 

"This  particular  farmer  moved  off  a  very  rich 
bottom  farm,  which  was  a  heavy  producer  of  all 
crops  except  potatoes,  on  to  the  land  he  occupies 
to-day.  I  remember  that  his  neighbors  said  he  was 
foolish  for  moving,  that  the  bottom  land  had  twice 
the  productivity  of  the  other  tract. 

"The  man  who  moved  said  that  they  were  right 
in  a  general  way,  but  that  he  had  always  made  his 
money  with  potatoes,  which  blighted  on  the  bot- 
tom lands  and  were  only  of  moderate  quality,  and 
that  the  nature  of  the  subsoil  made  their  irriga- 
tion a  matter  of  chance. 

*'I  have  myself  seen  water  turned  on  at  one 
comer  of  a  field  in  such  lands,  come  bubbling  up 
forty  or  sixty  rods  away,  having  in  some  places 
sub-irrigated  considerable  areas  to  the  point  of 
saturation,  in  others  passing  through  contracted 
channels,  leaving  the  surrounding  soil  as  dry  as  a 
bone. 

"The  man  who  moved  and  the  man  who  suc- 
ceeded him  on  the  bottom  farm  have  both  done 
well  by  specializing  (the  latter  growing  sugar-beets) 
somewhat  on  the  crops  their  lands  were  adapted  to, 
but  the  potato  man  has  made  his  money  easier,  has 
had  less  help  than  is  entailed  in  growing  beets,  and 
has  been  able  to  make  good  with  the  help  of  his  own 
family;  in  other  words,  has  had  the  more  self-con- 
tained business  venture. 


THE  POTATO  27 

"By  the  use  of  plenty  of  alfalfa,  mostly  fed  on 
the  place,  he  has  added  to  his  sandy  soil  the  ele- 
ment it  needed  by  increasing  its  organic  and  humus 
content,  and  the  sand  seems  to  contain  those  other 
elements  necessary  to  the  growth  of  good,  clean 
potatoes." 

The  value  of  aeration  is  very  convincingly  il- 
lustrated by  digging  into  a  hill  of  potatoes  grown 
on  heavy,  poorly  drained  and  aired  soil.  The 
deeper  into  the  hill  that  tubers  are  found,  the 
rougher  and  more  diseased  they  are.  It  is  also  a 
notable  fact  that  the  exhibit  potatoes  from  an 
average  field  are  those  that  develop  close  to  the 
surface. 


CHAPTER  V 

DRAINAGE 

IN  ATTEMPTING  to  accomplish  the  object 
sought  in  this  work  —  i.e.,  that  of  embodying 
in  one  pubKcation  as  nearly  as  possible  all 
that  is  available  and  valuable  information  in  the 
potato  field  —  the  subject  of  drainage  is  held  to 
be  of  such  importance  that  considerable  space  is 
devoted  to  it.  The  following  article  is  made  up 
of  extracts  from  "Bulletin  199"  of  the  Agricultural 
Experiment  Station  of  the  University  of  Wis- 
consin and  is  by  E.  R.  Jones,  one  of  America's 
foremost  drainage  experts: 

"Of  the  several  conditions  which  influence  the 
growth  of  crops  none  is  more  important  than  the 
amount  of  water  in  or  on  the  soil.  While  w  ater  in 
a  thin  film  around  the  soil  grains  is  absolutely  es- 
sential to  plants,  an  excess  is  as  bad  as  a  deficiency. 
The  removal  of  this  excess  is  known  as  land 
drainage.  Surface  drainage  deals  with  the  sur- 
face runoff,  and  under-drainage  with  the  water 
which  occupies  the  spaces  between  the  soil  grains. 
Most  land  has  some  natural  drainage,  but  many 
acres  have  it  to  such  a  limited  degree  that  an  im- 
provement therein  is  found  profitable. 
"Too  much  water  is  detrimental  because: 
"1.  It  makes  areas  so  soft  that  they  cannot  be 
cultivated.  When  these  soft  areas  are  long  and 
narrow   in   form,    they   cut    the   upland   into   ir- 

28 


THE  POTATO  29 

regular  pieces  that  cannot  be  cultivated  con- 
veniently. 

"2.  It  delays  cultivation,  particularly  in  the 
spring. 

"3.  It  makes  soils  cold:  (a)  because  in  the  spring 
more  than  half  of  the  heat  that  the  soil  receives 
is  used  to  warm  this  unnecessary  water;  (b)  be- 
cause its  evaporation  consumes  heat  that  the  soil 
could  otherwise  retain;  and  (c)  because  its  pres- 
ence in  the  soil  prevents  the  entrance  and  down- 
ward movement  of  rainwater,  which  in  the  spring 
is  usually  warmer  than  the  soil. 

"4.  It  crowds  out  the  oxygen  from  between  the 
soil  grains,  thus  hindering  the  necessary  decom- 
position of  organic  matter  in  the  soil. 

"5.  It  prevents  all  crop  growth  where  it  stands 
on  the  soil  to  a  sufficient  depth.  Where  it  stag- 
nates only  a  few  inches  from  the  surface  of  the 
soil  it  prevents  healthy  root  development  below 
that  depth.  The  shallow  root  system  thus  devel- 
oped limits  the  depth  from  wliich  the  plant  may 
get  water,  and  with  it  plant  food  material. 

"The  occurrence  of  an  excess  of  water  in  a  soil 
or  on  an  area  is  an  indication  that  some  source 
supplies  water  faster  than  it  can  be  removed.  The 
water  is  either  coming  too  fast  or  it  is  going  too 
slowly.  Areas  at  the  foot  of  uplands  from  which 
numerous  small  or  large  springs  run  during  the 
greater  portion  of  the  year  owe  their  wetness  to  the 
excessive  seepage  from  the  upland;  while  reten- 
tive clavs,  due  to  the  fineness  of  the  soil,  and  flat 
muck  or  peat  marshes,  due  to  lack  of  fall,  are  too 
wet  primarily  because  the  water  is  very  slowly  re- 
moved from  them. 

"It  is  evident  that  the  drainage  conditions  on 
an  area  may  be  improved  either  by  hindering  the 


30  THE  POTATO 

entrance  of  damaging  water  upon  one  side,  or  by 
facilitating  its  removal  from  the  other.  To  ac- 
complish one  or  both  of  these  improvements 
drains  must  be  constructed  which  will  give  gravity 
a  better  opportunity  to  remove  surplus  water. 

"When  the  drainage  needs  of  our  lands  are  ana- 
lyzed it  is  evident  that  those  that  have  good  drain- 
age owe  it  to: 

"1.  Some  natural  condition  that  prevents  the 
entrance  of  an  excessive  amount  of  water; 

*'2.  A  valley  or  ravine  to  serve  as  an  outlet  for 
the  water  that  does  enter; 

"3.  A  surface  slope  to  allow  the  escape  of  sur- 
face water  to  the  outlet,  or 

*'4.  A  subsoil  sufficiently  porous  to  admit  of 
some  under-drainage. 

*' Consequently,  improvements  in  drainage  con- 
ditions consist  of: 

"1.  Protection  ditches  in  the  absence  of  natural 
protection ; 

"2.  Outlet  ditches  where  there  are  no  valleys 
or  ravines; 

"3.  Surface  ditches  to  aid  the  limited  slope  in 
removing  surface  water,  or 

"4.  Covered  under-drains  to  facilitate  the  re- 
moval of  damaging  water  from  wet  subsoils. 
Some  areas  need  only  one  of  these  types,  while 
others  need  them  all. 

*'When  water  oozes  into  the  dead  furrows  and 
shallow  ditches  until  they  are  kept  wet  almost 
continuallv  it  is  an  indication  that  the  land  needs 
tiling.  The  water  table,  instead  of  extending 
horizontally  from  a  tile,  bends  upward  at  a  slope 
that  increases  with  the  retentiveness  of  the  soil. 
It  is  evident  that  laterals  may  be  farther  apart  in 
sand  than  in  clay,  and  that  the  deeper  the  laterals 


THE  POTATO  31 

are  the  farther  apart  they  may  be.  Four  rods  is 
a  common  interval  in  clay  subsoils  and  eight  rods 
in  open  subsoils.  In  muck  or  peat  it  is  frequently 
best  to  put  them  eight  rods  apart  at  first,  and  if 
that  does  not  i)rove  to  be  close  enough  together 
an  intermediate  line  may  be  put  in  later  in  each 
space,  making  them  eventually  four  rods  apart. 
In  rare  cases  of  springy  soils  it  has  been  found 
necessary  to  have  lines  of  tile  two  rods  apart. 

"A  single  line  of  tile  in  a  wet  sag  is  frequently 
sufficient,  but  if  more  than  four  rods  wide,  two 
lines  are  better,  each  to  be  located  as  near  to  its 
side  of  the  sag  as  seems  necessary.  In  this  way 
the  centre  of  the  sag,  unless  it  is  exceedingly  low, 
will  be  protected  from  the  seepage  of  the  adja- 
cent upland. 

"Mains  are  generally  located  parallel  to  a  nat- 
ural water  course  —  a  little  to  one  side  if  there  is 
danger  of  washing  by  the  surface  runoff.  Sub- 
mains  should  be  so  laid  out  as  to  give  the  lat- 
erals a  sufficient  gradient  without  an  excessive 
depth. 

"Instead  of  permitting  each  lateral  to  dis- 
charge directly  into  the  outlet  ditch,  it  is  best  to 
put  in  a  main  perhaps  four  rods  away  from  the 
ditch  and  parallel  to  it,  to  receive  the  discharge 
from  the  laterals.  The  expense  is  but  little 
greater  because  of  the  saving  in  the  length  of 
the  laterals,  and  there  is  an  advantage  in  having 
only  one  outlet  —  that  of  the  main  —  to  look 
after. 

"The  water  in  an  outlet  ditch  should  be  enougli 
below  the  banks  to  afford  an  outlet  for  a  line  of 
tile  which  may  be  laid  to  it  from  any  part  of  the 
marsh  of  which  the  ditch  is  the  direct  outlet.  This 
line  of  tile  is  entitled  to  a  depth  of  3  feet  at  the 


32  THE  POTATO 

head,  and  a  gradient  of  0.1  foot  in  100  feet.  On 
a  marsh  exactly  level  and  with  no  part  more  than 
half  a  mile  from  an  outlet  ditch,  this  means  that 
the  3  feet  of  depth  at  the  head,  added  to  the  2.64 
feet  of  fall  in  a  half  mile  requires  a  depth  a  little 
more  than  5J  feet  deep  at  the  outlet.  With  an 
allowance  of  2J  feet  for  the  depth  of  the  water  in 
the  outlet  ditch,  it  is  evident  that,  under  these 
conditions,  it  should  be  dug  8  feet  deep.  Where 
there  is  a  surface  slope  toward  the  ditch,  its  depth 
may  be  decreased  by  an  amount  equal  to  the  fall 
causing  the  slope.  Following  this  rule,  the  depth 
may,  in  rare  cases,  be  reduced  to  4  feet.  Tile  out- 
lets may  be  submerged  for  a  short  time  during 
flood  flow  without  serious  results. 

"It  is  impossible  to  drain  too  deep  for  the 
majority  of  farm  crops.  Our  upland  soils  remain 
moist  where  the  water  table  is  100  feet  or 
more  below  the  surface.  It  is  true  that  a  drained 
peat  unless  compacted  with  a  heavy  roller  will 
dry  out  almost  completely  to  a  depth  of  from  3  to 
6  inches.  How^ever,  below  that  depth,  it  is  un- 
usual if  the  peat  does  not  remain  moist  regardless 
of  the  depth  of  the  water  table. 

"When  plants  'dry  up'  in  a  peat  soil  it  is  an 
indication  that  at  some  time  the  water  table  has 
been  so  near  the  surface  that  onlj^  a  shallow  root 
system  was  developed.  With  deep  drainage  from 
the  beginning,  conditions  favor  the  development 
of  a  root  system  deep  enough  to  reach  through  the 
dry  layer  at  the  surface  into  the  moist  soil  below. 
This  is  the  moisture  that  must  be  relied  upon  dur- 
ing a  drought.  It  is  best  to  prepare  for  a  drought 
by  deep  drainage  during  the  w^et  season  of  the 
year. 

"Tile  laid  deep  seem  to  begin  their  increased 


THE  POTATO  33 

discharge  as  soon  after  a  rain  as  do  those  laid 
more  shallow.  However,  the  rate  of  increase  does 
not  seem  to  be  so  great  in  the  deep  tile  in  reten- 
tive clay  soils.  To  this  is  probably  due  the  fact 
that  deep  drains  continue  their  discharge  when 
shallow  drains  have  become  nearly  or  wholly  dry. 
Furthermore,  deep  drains  are  effective  for  a 
greater  distance  on  each  side  of  themselves  than 
are  shallow  drains.  Generally  speaking,  tile  should 
be  laid  deeper  in  sand,  muck,  and  peat  than  in 
clay. 

*'In  narrow  wet  ravines  and  in  springy  spots 
the  demands  made  upon  single  lines  of  tile  may 
require  a  diameter  of  five  or  six  inches.  With 
the  vast  majority  of  laterals,  particularly  those  in 
the  gridiron  systems,  this  is  larger  than  the  diame- 
ter actually  required  if  the  tile  remain  entirely  un- 
obstructed. However,  there  should  be  made  an 
allowance:  (1)  in  sandy  soils,  for  the  sand  that 
finds  its  way  into  the  tile  while  they  are  being  laid, 
and  before  they  are  properly  blinded;  (2)  in  peat 
soils,  for  the  uneven  settling  that  may  take  place 
and  cause  a  tile  to  'jog'  slightly  past  the  ad- 
jacent one;  and  (3)  in  all  soils,  for  the  empty  space 
that  should  be  maintained  in  the  top  half  of  the 
tile  to  facilitate  the  entrance  of  water.  Laterals  are 
most  efficient  as  collecting  drains  when  they  are 
less  than  half  full.  They  lose  this  efficiency  when 
made  to  discharge  under  a  pressure  head.  For 
these  reasons  three-inch  tile  should  be  rarelv  laid 
except  in  retentive  clay  soils  and  then  in  lines  less 
than  five  hundred  feet  long.  Four  inches  is  the 
diameter  most  commonly  used. 

"Areas  requiring  drainage  are  usually  so  nearly 
level  that  it  is  necessary  to  make  the  best  possible 
use  of  every  inch  of  available  fall.      The  gradient 


34  THE  POTATO 

of  laterals  may  be  increased  by  laying  them  shal- 
low at  the  head  and  deep  at  the  outlet,  sometimes 
only  two  feet  deep  at  the  head  and  three  and  a  half 
at  the  outlet.  The  gradient  of  a  main  cannot  be 
controlled  in  this  way,  because  at  the  head  it  must 
be  deep  enough  to  receive  the  discharge  from  the 
laterals.  However,  the  diameter  of  the  main  may 
be  increased  to  give  it  the  required  capacity.  A 
gradient  of  a  tenth  of  a  foot,  or  about  one  and  a 
quarter  inches,  to  a  hundred  feet  is  generally  con- 
sidered a  minimum  gradient  for  laterals.  The  gra- 
dient in  large  mains  may  be  decreased  to  almost 
nothing,  because  the  diameter  of  the  tile  itself 
may  be  considered  as  constituting  a  gradient. 

"With  the  cost  of  the  main  seldom  more  than 
$4  an  acre,  and  the  cost  of  the  labor  and  tile  for 
laterals  fairly  constant  at  about  75  cents  a  rod, 
it  is  the  frequency  of  the  laterals  that  is  the  chief 
factor  in  determining  the  cost  of  tile  drainage. 
The  cost  will  range  from  $20  to  $35  an  acre  ac- 
cording as  the  laterals  are  placed  four  rods 
apart  or  eight  rods  apart.  This  frequency  should 
be  based  upon  principles  which  have  been  dis- 
cussed in  the  preceding  pages.  It  is  safe  to  say, 
however,  that  while  eight  rods  is  the  interval 
which  in  some  soils  may  yield  the  greatest  dividend 
upon  the  money  invested  in  the  improvement,  yet 
there  is  no  danger  of  eventually  getting  the  lat- 
erals too  close  together. 

"  Where  under-drainage  is  desired  tile  are  cheaper 
than  open  ditches  of  the  same  depth.  Further- 
more, they  offer  no  obstacle  to  cultivation,  take 
up  no  surface  space,  and  are  more  permanent  than 
the  ditches.  There  are  tile  in  Wisconsin  that  are 
working  as  good  or  better  than  ever  at  the  end  of 
thirty  years,   and   in  some  states  the   life   of  tile 


THE  POTATO  35 

has  been  miieli  longer  than  that.  If  tile  are  laid 
more  than  two  feet  deep,  it  does  not  hurt  them  to 
freeze  if  they  are  empty  when  they  freeze.  There 
should  be  no  sags  in  a  grade  line  to  prevent  the 
tile  from  emptying  themselves.  Silt  also  has  a 
tendency  to  settle  in  such  sags.  At  that  depth 
the  expansion  of  the  water  in  the  walls  of  the  tile 
has  but  httle  apparent  effect  upon  the  tile.  Tile 
exposed  to  the  frequent  and  sudden  freezing  and 
thawing  occurring  at  an  exposed  outlet  or  on  the 
surface  of  the  ground  may  crumble  in  a  single 
winter. 

"There  is  danger  in  sandy  subsoils  of  the  en- 
trance of  soil  particles  larger  than  can  be  removed 
by  the  running  water.  Sand  enters  with  ease,  but 
is  carried  away  with  difficulty.  Tile  laid  in  sandy 
subsoil  should  be  'blinded'  or  entirely  surrounded 
by  and  packed  with  clay,  muck,  or  old  grass. 
This  being  done,  cracks  an  eighth  of  an  inch  wide 
are  permissible. 

"A  single  tile  may  break  some  years  after  being 
laid,  and  the  earth  that  enters  is  apt  to  render  the 
line  useless  above  that  point.  Such  a  place  can 
usually  be  found  with  ease.  The  broken  tile 
should  be  replaced  with  new  ones,  after  the  earth 
has  been  removed  from  the  tile  that  have  been 
wholly  or  partly  filled. 

"On  springy  areas  having  a  slope  sufficiently 
great  that  water  runs  rapidly  in  shallow  ditches 
the  flow  of  water  will  invariably  indicate  the 
proper  direction  for  main  and  laterals.  On  areas 
less  favored  with  a  fall  a  few^  preliminary  readings 
with  a  level  are  of  value  to  indicate  how  small  the 
fall  is.  If  less  than  two  feet  in  eighty  rods,  none 
but  a  survevor's  instrument  should  l^e  used  for  the 
remainder    of    the    work.     If    greater    tlum    that 


36  THE  POTATO 

amount,  a  carpenter's  level  carefully  used  or 
perhaps  the  water's  surface  in  the  bottom  of  the 
trench  will  do.  Borings  made  with  an  auger  or 
post  hole  digger  will  show  the  nature  of  the  sub- 
soil, and  the  size,  depth,  and  frequency  of  the 
laterals  should  be  based  thereon." 


CHAPTER  VI 

SEED  STOCKS  AND  VARIETIES 

AVERY  frequent  question  asked  by  amateurs 
and  others  is,  "What  is  the  best  potato?" 
The  answer  is  that  there  is  no  universally 
"best"  potato,  but  that  certain  varieties  have 
proved  best  for  certain  conditions,  and  as  con- 
ditions change,  or  the  varieties  change,  further 
changes  must  be  made. 

There  are  hundreds  of  varieties  of  potatoes,  a 
large  number  of  them  good  under  certain  con- 
ditions. This  must  be  determined  by  experiment 
and  test  in  the  locality  in  question. 

The  origin  of  a  number  of  the  leading  varieties, 
showing  shape  and  relative  size,  is  shown  on  the 
accompanying  "  Pharo's  Potato  Chart. "  The  time 
of  maturity  is  also  shown,  EE  meaning  Extra 
Early;  E,  Early;  Med.,  Medium,  and  L,  Late. 

Practical  results  seem  to  indicate  that  when  po- 
tatoes are  grown  under  favorable  conditions  (such 
as  the  mountain  districts  of  Colorado,  Idaho,  and 
other  parts  of  the  West),  and  when  cultural  meth- 
ods are  good,  they  do  not  "run  out"  and  deteri- 
orate. 

Lack  of  care  in  selecting  seed  true  to  type,  use  of 
small  whole  seed  and  small  cut  seed,  and  storage 
under  conditions  that  lessen  vitality,  tend  to 
weaken  the  plant  and  the  strength  and  size  of  root 
system,  all  of  which  result  in  lessened  vitahty  and 
an  inferior  "run  out"  product. 

87 


38  THE  POTATO 

It  is  generally  considered  that  seed  grown  at 
high  altitudes  or  well  north  is  superior  to  lower 
altitude  or  southern  seed.  One  reason  for  this 
is  that  the  frost  checks  late  growth  and  the  tubers 
do  not  fully  mature.  Partially  matured  seed  keeps 
better  and  makes  stronger  growing  plants  that  are 
less  liable  to  disease. 

Certain  districts  in  Maine,  Wisconsin,  Colorado, 
and  other  states  make  a  specialty  of  growing  seed. 

The  potato  is  not  propagated  commercially  from 
a  seed,  but  from  a  cutting  from  the  tuber,  the  tuber 
being  an  enlargement  of  an  underground  stem. 
Potatoes  grown  from  the  true  seed  ball  of  the 
potato  do  not  reproduce  true  to  type. 

An  interesting  discussion  of  seed  and  varieties 
is  contained  in  "Potatoes,"  a  lecture  delivered  by 
Arthur  W.  Sutton  before  the  Royal  Horticultural 
Society  and  reprinted  by  permission  from  that 
body  and  Mr.  Sutton.     An  extract  follows: 

"There  is  a  misunderstanding  arising  from  the 
fact  that  'seed  potatoes'  and  'potato  seed'  are 
sometimes  regarded  as  synonymous  terms.  'Seed 
potatoes'  are  grown  from  perfectly  true  and  reli- 
able stocks,  the  crops  being  carefully  examined 
year  after  year  with  the  special  object  of  insuring 
the  perpetuation,  unmixed,  of  any  given  variety. 
Frequently  the  tubers  Ox  an  ordinary  crop,  which 
are  too  small  for  market,  are  kept  back  for  plant- 
ing, and  dignified  with  the  title  'Seed  Potatoes.' 

"I  need  scarcely  remind  you  that  potatoes  are 
mere  enlargements  of  undergiound  stems,  short- 
ened and  thickened,  in  which  starch  is  stored  up  in 
smaller  or  larger  proportion  according  to  the  char- 
acteristics of  the  se\eral  varieties.  Like  other  un- 
derground stems,  the  tubers  possess  buds  or  eyes. 


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THE  POTATO  39 

from  which,  by  fresh  shoots,  the  plant  is  capable  of 
redevelopment;  and  although  the  tubers  may  be 
preserved  through  the  winter  for  planting  again 
in  the  following  spring  they  are  neither  more  nor 
less  than  portions  of  the  plant  which  died  down 
and  apparently  ceased  to  exist  in  the  previous 
autumn.  Hence  the  life  of  a  single  potato  plant 
may  be  prolonged  year  after  year  until  through 
weakness  or  deterioration  it  comes  to  an  end. 

"Potato  seed,  on  the  other  hand,  is  totally  dis- 
tinct in  every  way,  being  the  seeds  formed  in  the 
potato  berries  which  some,  though  not  all,  varieties 
of  potatoes  bear  freely.  A  berry  may  contain 
from  100  to  300  seeds,  the  average  of  five  berries 
examined  being  232,  and  as  the  parent  plant  ap- 
pears able  to  control  but  slightly  the  distinctive 
character  of  its  progeny,  and  as  all  the  different 
seeds  from  one  potato  berry  may  produce  plants 
differing  from  one  another,  not  only  in  form,  but 
many  of  them  in  color  also,  it  is  here  we  find  the 
great  possibilities  for  improving  the  race  by  selec- 
tion of  the  better  seedlings.  Even  if  no  cross- 
fertihzation  of  flowers  was  attempted,  great  im- 
provement might  be  made  by  the  selection  of  the 
most  promising  seedlings  during  the  first  few  years 
of  their  existence;  but  where  judicious  crossing  of 
the  best  known  varieties  is  undertaken,  we  can  in  a 
great  measure  combine  in  some  of  the  resulting 
seedlings  the  merits  of  both  male  and  female  par- 
ents, although  even  then  no  two  seedlings  from  the 
same  berry  may  be  exactly  alike. 

"Those  who  attempt  to  raise  seedling  potatoes 
must  possess  abundant  patience.  Like  many 
other  species  which  are  not  habitually  multiplied 
by  seed,  the  potato  has  a  remarkable  tendency  to 
revert  to  the  wild  form.     It  may  be  necessary  to 


40  THE  POTATO 

cultivate  100  or  even  1,000  seedlings  before  find- 
ing one  which  is  really  worthy  of  a  place  among 
the  better  varieties  already  existing.  M.  Vilmorin 
says  that  in  France  the  raising  of  seed  potatoes  has 
been  proceeded  with  in  a  somewhat  haphazard 
manner;  whereas,  in  England,  on  the  other  hand, 
a  more  systematic  method  has  been  followed,  rich- 
ness in  starch,  excellence  in  flavor,  power  of  resist- 
ing disease,  with  little  tendency  to  develop  haulm 
(top),  being  the  characteristics  we  on  this  side  of  the 
channel  generally  seek.  Unfortunately,  he  says, 
they  are  not  always  able  to  profit  in  France  by 
progress  realized  in  England,  because  the  French 
have  a  marked  preference  for  potatoes  with  yellow 
flesh;  whereas  in  England,  for  many  years  past, 
there  has  been  a  preference  for  white-fleshed  pota- 
toes. On  this  account  even  the  celebrated  Mag- 
num Bonum,  which  my  house  had  the  honor  of 
introducing  in  1876,  after  having  enjoyed  a  brief 
popularity  in  the  Paris  markets,  has  been  almost 
aba*ndoned  as  a  table  variety  on  account  of  the 
flesh  being  too  pale  in  color.  M.  Vilmorin  re- 
marks that  in  Germany  considerable  attention  has 
been  given  to  the  raising  of  seed  potatoes,  and  more 
particularly  with  the  object  of  obtaining  varieties 
which  are  specially  adapted  for  the  production  of 
alcohol  and  starch. " 

Improvement  in  the  potato  comes  from  a  search 
for  the  ideal.     The  Irish  Farming  World  says : 

The  potato  wanted  should  possess  the  follow- 
ing essentials: 

"  (1)     It  should  be  a  heavy  cropper. 

*'  (2)     It  should  have  good  table  qualities. 

*'  (3)     It  should  be  a  good  disease  resister. 


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X 


■/ 


Standard  Early  Varieties:  upper  left-hand  corner  shows  Early 
Ohio;  u|)per  rij;ht-hand  corner  shows  Early  Rose;  lower  left-hand 
corner  shows  Irish  (\)l)l)lcr;  lower  right-hand  corner  shows 
Trinniph.  The  Irish  Cohhler  is  not  as  vet  raised  extensively  in 
Wisconsin,  hut  is  a  standard  early  variety  of  the  East.  —  Eroin 
University  of  Wisconsin  Agricultural  Exi)eriment  Station  Bulletin 


>~ -■!-.!-■?•_ 


'v^  Vi 


\. 


>/ 


Standard  Late  X'arieties:  Upper  left-hand  corner  shows  Burbank; 
upper  right-hand  corner  shows  Green  [Mountain;  lower  left-hand 
corner  shows  Rural  New  Yorker;  lower  right-hand  corner  shows 
Peerless.  These  varieties  represent  typical  commercial  types. 
The  Green  Mountain  is  not  raised  commercially  in  AYisconsin,  but 
is  one  of  the  leading  late  varieties  of  the  East. — From  University 
of  Wisconsin  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  Bulletin 


THE  rOTATO  41 


<(i 


Or,  in  other  words,  *the  three  R's'  of  the  ideal 
potato   are:     Rcproductiveness,    Rehsh,    Robust- 


ness.'* 


It  must  always  be  remembered  that  varieties 
moved  from  one  locality  to  another,  especially  with 
radical  changes  of  conditions  such  as  European 
varieties  brought  to  America,  must  be  acclimated 
before  the  best  results  can  be  expected.  It  is  possi- 
ble that  excellent  sorts  imported  from  England 
have  been  discarded  before  they  have  become 
thoroughly  adapted  to  our  conditions. 

In  Europe  potatoes  are  classed  as  "soft"  and 
"hard,"  depending  on  their  texture  and  keeping 
quality.  When  cut  seed  of  the  "soft"  varieties  is 
used  it  is  apt  to  decay  rapidly. 

The  experts  in  the  United  States  Department  of 
Agriculture  are  doing  a  great  work  in  breeding 
and  hybridizing  potatoes.  In  1910  Prof.  L.  C. 
Corbett  of  the  Bureau  of  Horticulture,  who  is  in 
charge  of  the  Experimental  Farm  at  Arlington, 
near  Washington,  w^as  growing  40,000  plants  — 
the  results  of  cross-pollinizing  almost  every  known 
variety.  Careful  records  are  kept  of  every  plant. 
In  the  experimental  potato  field  over  one  half  mil- 
lion tubers  were  produced. 

This  work  gives  promise  of  wonderful  results  for 
the  American  potato  grower  in  new  varieties  that 
will  be  greater  yielders  of  a  higher  class  product, 
stronger  growers,  and  more  disease  resistant. 

The  varieties  of  potatoes  in  highest  favor  differ 
in  almost  every  locality,  as  has  been  already  noted. 
In  order  to  give  an  idea  of  the  varieties  being  tried, 
with  some  views  as  to  their  value,  quotations  will 
be  made  from  several  sources.  This  information 
will  be  of  comparative  value,  only,  to  the  indivi(hial 


42  THE  POTATO 

grower,  and  must  be  used  more  for  the  purpose  of 
deciding  what  might  be  well  to  try  than  to  follow 
the  suggestions  blindly. 

NEW    HAMPSHIRE 

In  "Bulletin  3"  of  the  New  Hampshire  Experi- 
ment Station  is  the  following: 

**  As  our  New  England  markets  demand  a  round 
or  oblong  white  potato,  we  recommend  for  main 
crop  the  planting  of  such  varieties  as  the  Green 
Mountain  and  Delaware,  or  varieties  that  closely 
resemble  them. 

"As  seedsmen  are  each  year  introducing  and 
selling  at  fabulous  prices  new  and  untried  varieties, 
the  most  of  which  are  soon  dropped  from  their 
catalogues  and  forgotten,  we  advise  growers  to  de- 
pend on  standard  sorts  that  have  been  fully  tested 
and  found  adapted  to  their  soil  and  market,  and 
allow  their  experiment  station  to  test  the  novelties 
for  them,  thus  preventing  a  large  annual  waste  of 
time  and  money. " 

OHIO 

That  the  Ohio  Experiment  Station  has  tested 
hundreds  of  varieties  of  potatoes  and  is  yet  con- 
tinuing this  work  is  reported  in  "Bulletin  218." 

"Many  new  varieties  are  constantly  being  offered 
by  originators,  introducers,  or  dealers  in  different 
parts  of  the  country.  A  few  of  these  prove  of 
value;  an  occasional  one  is  excellent;  many  are 
quite  inferior  to  our  already  well  known  and 
standard  kinds.  The  question  of  varieties  is  one 
that  cannot  be  treated  in  a  general  way  with  equal 


TIIE  POTATO  43 

benefit  to  all  potato  growers.  Each  grower  must 
determine  for  himself  those  varieties  which  do  best 
under  his  pjirticuhir  conditions  of  soil  and  climate, 
and  use  his  own  judgment  in  retaining  the  choicest 
of  these  for  home  use,  or  market,  or  both. 

"It  has  been  remarked  by  certain  growers,  too, 
that  it  is  well  nigh  useless  to  buy  new  varieties; 
for,  an  many  cases,  they  declare,  the  alleged  new 
variety  proves  to  be  only  an  old  sort  renamed  and 
sold  at  a  fancy  price.  This  position  tends  to  con- 
fusion and  misunderstanding  and  often  unjust 
criticism  of  originators,  introducers,  and  dealers  in 
pure  seed  stock.  True,  there  are  cases  in  which 
old  varieties  may  have  been  reintroduced  under 
new  names  —  we  are  aware  of  a  limited  number  of 
such  cases  —  but  such  deception  is  more  rare  than 
general.  Usually  the  confusion  of  growers  is  oc- 
casioned by  the  fact  that  there  are  several  distinct 
types,  families,  or  groups  of  potatoes  and  that  the 
hundreds  of  varieties  of  different  origin  may  be 
classified  in  these  several  groups.  Indeed,  there 
are  many  varieties  of  separate  and  distinct  origin 
which  follow  a  single  type  so  closely  as  not  to  be 
readily  distinguished  from  each  other,  either  by 
habit  or  growth  of  plant  or  character  of  tubers, 
even  by  an  expert  potato  specialist. 

"To  present  in  completeness  and  with  absolute 
accuracy  the  lists  of  varieties  belonging  to  the 
various  groups  would  tax  the  most  careful  student 
of  botany.  Such  exact  classification  is  neither 
necessary  nor  advisable  in  a  purely  practical  treat- 
ise of  this  kind.  In  the  following  classification 
the  writer  has  not  only  reduced  the  groups  to  the 
least  possible  number,  but  mentions  only  a  few 
of  the  many  varieties  which  might  easily  be  in- 
cluded in  each  one.     The  classification  is  based 


44  THE  POTATO 

principally  upon  similarity  of  the  character  of  the 
tubers  of  the  different  varieties,  without  special 
consideration  of  the  similarity  of  the  plants  of 
each.  In  many  cases,  however,  there  is  a  similar- 
ity of  plants  as  well  as  of  tubers. 

^^The  Triumph  Group:  Round,  white,  red  or  mot- 
tled; first  early.  Bliss  Red  Triumph  (known  also 
as  Stray  Beauty,  Strawberry  and  Bermuda  red), 
Bliss  White  Triumph,  Norton  Beauty,  Nott's 
Early  Peachblow,  Woods'  Earliest. 

^'The  Early  Market  Group:  Round  or  oval,  flat- 
tened; white  or  slightly  tinted;  very  early;  good 
quality,  much  superior  to  the  Triumph  group. 
Early  Market,  Early  Standard,  Early  Petoskey, 
Irish  Cobbler. 

^^ Early  Ohio  Group:  Very  similar  to  Early  Ohio 
in  various  ways.  Early  Ohio,  Early  White  Ohio, 
Early  Six  Weeks,  Baker's  Extra  Early,  Peck's 
Early,  Acme,  Ohio  Junior. 

''Early  Rose  Group:  Long  or  oblong,  cylindrical  or 
flattened;  pink  or  white  or  mottled.  Early  Rose, 
Early  Roser,  Mountrose,  Northern  Star,  Early 
Fortune,  Early  Bovee,  Early  Sensation,  Early 
Northern,  Algoma,  Miller-Brooke,  Early  Break- 
fast (white).  Early  Michigan  (white). 

"Green  Mountain  Group:  Oblong  to  long;  some- 
what irregular  in  form;  usually  white  or  straw 
color.  Green  Mountain,  Whiton's  White  Mam- 
moth, Gold  Coin,  Ionia,  Uncle  Sam,  Washington, 
Happy  Medium,  American  Giant,  State  of  Maine. 

""Seneca  Beauty  Group:  Long  or  oblong,  smooth; 
small,  very  shallow  eyes;  red,  pink  or  white  with 
pink  eyes;  quality  excellent.  Seneca  Beauty, 
Livingston  (White  Seneca  Beauty),  Piqua  Chief, 
Pat's  Choice. 

''Rural  Neio  Yorker  Group:  Round  or  oval,  much 


THE  POTATO  45 

fl<attened;  few  shallow  eyes;  color  iisiiallj^  white; 
quality  variable.  Rural  New  Yorker,  Ilural  Rus- 
set, Banner,  Carman  No.  3,  President  Roosevelt, 
Prosperity,  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  Ohio  Wonder, 
Green's   No.    21,   White   Giant,  World  Wonder." 

MINNESOTA 

The  Minnesota  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 
in  "Bulletin  118"  furnishes  the  following  infor- 
mation : 

"1.  The  better  varieties  of  potatoes  are  as 
follows: 

"Recommended  for  planting:  early.  Early  Ohio, 
and  for  southern  markets,  the  Red  Bliss  Triumph; 
late,  Rural  New  Yorker  No.  2,  Sir  W^alter  Raleigh, 
and  Carman  No.  3. 

"Worthy  of  trial:  early,  Acme  and  Norton 
Beauty;  medium  early.  Early  Bird,  Early  Mich- 
igan, Early  Norwood,  and  Queen  of  Sweden; 
medium  to  medium  late,  Carman  No.  1,  Norcross, 
and  New  Queen;  late,  Pingree  and  California 
Russet. 

"2.  Twelve  groups  of  potatoes,  more  or  less 
distinct,  are  being  studied.  The  more  important 
commercial  groups  in  Minneosta  are  the  Rural, 
Ohio,  Michigan,  Cobbler,  and  Green  Mountain 
groups. 

"The  indications  are  that,  whenever  a  valuable 
new  variety  of  potato  is  originated,  different  deal- 
ers put  it  on  the  market  under  different  names. 
Other  evidence  also  indicates  that  some  dealers 
put  well-known  and  well-established  varieties  on 
the  market  under  new  names.  Many  dealers  do 
not  seem  to  be  sufficiently  careful  to  keep  their 


46  THE  POTATO 

potato  seed  stock  pure  or  true  to  variety  name. 
Some,  if  they  run  out  of  a  variety,  will  substitute 
the  one  nearest  like  it  which  they  have  on  hand. 
The  result  of  these  pernicious  practices  is  an  end- 
less confusion  of  varieties,  which  may  require 
years  of  study  and  observation  to  unravel.  To 
the  farmer  it  means  that  he  is  never  sure  of  the 
variety  he  is  getting,  unless  he  knows  the  general 
reliabihty  of  the  firm  from  which  he  buys,  and 
that  it  has  a  man  in  charge  of  its  potato  depart- 
ment who  knows  varieties." 

COLORADO 

The  following  is  from  "Farmer's  Bulletin  386" 
of  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture,  by  the 
senior  author: 

*' Years  of  experience  have  demonstrated  that 
comparatively  few  varieties  of  potatoes  are  really 
adapted  to  Western  or  mountain  conditions. 
Among  the  early  varieties  none  has  been  so  univer- 
sally successful  as  the  Early  Ohio.  This  potato  is 
of  fine  quality  and  uniform  in  size  and  shape, 
though  not  a  heavy  yielder.  Another  good  potato, 
though  not  so  early,  is  the  Rose  Seedling. 

"For  a  medium  to  late  variety,  the  Dalmeny 
Challenge,  a  Scotch  variety,  is  being  used  quite 
extensively  on  the  western  slope  of  Colorado. 
For  later  varieties,  the  \^liite  Pearl,  and  Rural 
New  Yorker  No.  2  are  more  extensively  used  at 
Greeley,  in  the  San  Luis  Valley,  and  in  the  Un- 
compahgre  Valley;  and  the  Perfect  Peachblow  is 
the  favorite  in  the  upper  Grand  Valley.  The  lat- 
ter variety  has  been  grown  continuously  by  the 
writer  for  twenty -five  years,  and  under  the  system 


THE  POTATO  47 

of  seed  selection  already  described  it  has  become  a 
much  better  and  more  perfect  type  of  potato  than 
it  was  ten,  twenty-five,  or  even  sixty-five  years 
ago,  when  first  introduced." 

KANSAS 

Secretary  F.  D.  Coburn,  of  the  State  Board  of 
Agriculture  of  Kansas,  says: 

"Early  varieties  for  summer  marketing  are 
planted  mostly,  and  of  these  the  Early  Ohio  is  by 
all  odds  the  favorite,  followed  to  a  small  extent  by 
the  Early  Rose  and  Triumph,  as  named.  The 
small  proportion  of  late  sorts  planted  are  the  Bur- 
bank  and  Peachblow.  Even  for  winter  use  the 
early  varieties  are  grown,  and  left  undisturbed  in 
the  ground  until  fall.  While  some  home-grown 
stock  is  planted.  Northern-grown  seed  is  found 
best,  and  each  year  thousands  of  bushels  are 
shipped  in  by  planters  and  dealers,  who  buy  from 
Minnesota  and  eastern  North  Dakota,  in  the  Red 
River  Valley." 

WASHINGTON 

In  "Popular  Bulletin  No.  11"  of  the  Washington 
State  Experiment  Station  A.  G.  Craig  says: 

"There  are  often  different  strains  of  a  single 
variety  of  potatoes  which  differ  from  each  other 
in  their  characteristics  —  especially  yield  —  more 
than  do  the  different  varieties.  Many  varieties 
possess  more  characteristics  in  common  than  do 
two  different  strains  of  the  same  variety.  Hence, 
the  importance  of  a  well-bred  strain  of  any  given 


48  THE  POTATO 

variety  for  seed  purposes.  Select  only  such  vari- 
eties for  late  potatoes  as  will  mature  early  enough 
to  give  ample  time  for  digging  in  the  fall  under 
normal  conditions.  A  few  of  the  best  of  the  many 
hundred  varieties  which  have  been  grown  on  the 
station  farm  and  at  other  places  in  the  state  are 
described  below.  They  are  arranged  in  groups 
according  to  their  habits  of  growth,  and  in  each 
group  the  varieties  are  placed  in  the  order  of 
preference  —  yield,  shape,  color,  character  of  eyes, 
etc.,  being  taken  into  consideration  —  as  judged 
by  the  results  of  our  tw^o  years'  tests. 

'^  Group  1:  Varieties  that  produce  new  potatoes 
early,  and  mature  early  in  the  season:  New  Queen, 
White  Ohio,  White  Rose,  Pick's  Early,  Irish  Cob- 
bler, New  Early  Standard,  Six  Weeks,  White  Star, 
King  of  Michigan,  Early  Thoroughbred,  New 
Century,  New  Climax,  Early  Ohio,  Early  Rose. 

^' Group  2'.  Varieties  that  produce  new  potatoes 
early  and  mature  early  in  September:  Sweet  Home, 
Champion  of  the  World,  Early  Excelsior,  Rural 
Red,  Crine's  Lightning,  White  Victor,  Early 
Hamilton. 

Group  3:  Varieties  that  produce  new  potatoes 
early  but  mature  late:  Burpee's  Extra  Early, 
Arcadia,  Crown  Jewel,  Bovee,  Algoma. 

'''Group  Jf-:  Varieties  that  produce  good,  market- 
able tubers  and  ripen  early  in  the  fall;  promising 
for  localities  where  potatoes  have  a  tendency  to 
grow  too  late  in  the  fall:  New  Burbank,  American 
Wonder,  White  Lily,  Medium,  Carman  No.  1, 
Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  Green  Mountain,  Vermont 
Gold  Coin. 

'''Group  5:  Varieties  that  yield  heavily,  matur- 
ing late  in  season:  Governor  Folk,  Ross  Favorite, 
Rural  New  Yorker  No.  2,  Snowflake  Junior,  Car- 


THE  POTATO  49 

man  No.  3,  Burbank,  White  Beauty,  White  Mam- 
moth, North  Pole  Easterly,  Great  Divide,  North 
Pole  Stinnett,  Harvest  King,  North  Pole. 

Group  6:  Heavy  yielding  varieties;  undesirable 
for  market  purposes,  but  may  be  grown  for  stock 
feed:  Johnson's  Seedling,  Purple  and  Gold,  Pin- 
gree.  Red  Jacket,  Empress  of  India. " 

GREAT   BRITAIN 

The  following  letter  from  Arthur  W.  Sutton, 
Royal  Seed  Establishment,  Reading,  England,  ex- 
plains the  variety  situation  in  Great  Britain: 

"  As  regards  a  list  of  the  best  potatoes  now  grown 
in  Great  Britain,  I  should  like  to  explain  that  it 
would  be  quite  easy  to  double  and  treble  the  sorts 
mentioned  in  the  enclosed  list,  but  you  have  asked 
for  a  list  of  the  best  potatoes  now  grown  in  Great 
Britain,  and  I  have  therefore  confined  myself  to 
those  I  consider  the  best,  and  those  which  at  the 
same  time  are  fairly  widely  cultivated. 

"You  are  of  course  aware  that  whenever  a  po- 
tato is  introduced  which  proves  to  be  of  exceptional 
merit,  a  great  number  of  other  so-called  novelties 
very  rapidly  appear  in  commerce  under  different 
names,  which  cannot  be  distinguished  from  the 
original  type.  This  applies  particularly  to  the 
class  of  'Up  to  Date,'  some  of  the  most  popular 
of  this  type  of  potato  being  'Duchess  of  Cornwall, ' 
'The  Factor,'  and  'Scottish  Triumph;'  also  types 
corresponding  very  closely  to  'Sutton's  Abun- 
dance, '  such  as  ' Cramond  Blossom, '  'The  Provost,' 
'Diamond,'  and  'The  Crofter,'  also  to  'Lang- 
worthy,'  which  very  closely  resembles  'Clarke's 
Maincrop.'" 


50  THE  POTATO 

Following  is  a  list  of  potatoes  chiefly  grown  in 
Great  Britain: 

Earlies.  Sutton's  May  Queen:  This  variety  is 
very  extensively  grown,  especially  in  the  very 
earliest  districts,  such  as  Cornwall,  Jersey,  etc., 
and  is  without  doubt  the  finest  and  best  cropping 
first  earlv. 

Sutton's  Ringleader:  White  kidney,  white  flesh, 
the  earliest  potato  grown. 

Sutton's  Harbinger:  A  white  round,  white 
fleshed  variety,  an  excellent  cropper  of  superb 
flavor. 

Sutton's  Epicure:  A  white  round,  white  fleshed 
variety.  This  variety  is  more  largely  grown  than 
any  other  variety  in  the  north,  as  the  northern 
people  prefer  a  round  to  a  kidney  variety.  This 
particularly  refers  to  Ayrshire  one  of  the  earliest 
districts  in  the  United  Kingdom. 

Sutton's  90-fold :  This  is  a  heavy  cropping  white 
fleshed  kidney,  of  American  texture. 

Sir  John  Llewelyn:  White  kidney,  white  flesh, 
a  heavy  cropping  first  early. 

Duke  of  York:  White  kidney,  yellow  flesh,  an 
excellent  cropper,  of  good  flavor. 

Second  Earlies.  Sutton's  Windsor  Castle:  A 
vv^hite  round,  white  fleshed  potato,  heavy  cropper, 
considered  by  connoiseurs  to  be  one  of  the  best 
flavored  varieties  in  cultivation. 

Sutton's  Supreme:  White  kidney,  white  flesh, 
heavy  cropper,  excellent  quality. 

British  Queen:  A  heavy  cropping  variety  of 
good  flavor,  largely  grown  by  farmers. 

Sharpe's  Express:  WTiite  kidney,  white  flesh, 
excellent  cropper,  of  good  flavor. 

Late  Varieties.  Sutton's  White  City:  White 
kidney,  white  flesh,  handsome  shape,  perfect  cook- 


THE  POTATO  51 

ing  quality,  and  has  withstood  the  ravages  of  the 
"black  scab"  or  "wart  disease." 

Sutton's  Abundance:  White  round,  white  flesh, 
very  heavy  cropper,  of  splendid  flavor. 

Sutton's  Superlative:  White  kidney,  white  flesh, 
one  of  the  heaviest  cropping  main  crop  varieties 
grown. 

Up  to  Date:  Wliitc  kidney,  white  flesh,  excel- 
lent flavor,  one  of  the  most  popular  varieties. 

King  Edw^ard  VII:  Pink  mottled  kidney,  white 
flesh,  heavy  cropper,  and  is  largely  grown  in  the 
Midlands. 

SIZE    OF    SEED    AND    RATE    OF    SEEDING 

Growlers  will  be  found  to  recommend  the  use  of 
seed  varying  in  size  from  cut  pieces  having  one 
small  eye  to  whole  seed  weighing  six  to  eight 
ounces. 

The  best  growlers  everywdiere  —  those  who  are 
getting  the  greatest  yields  —  are  using  larger  seed 
each  year,  as  will  be  noted  in  the  chapters  on 
Great  Britain  and  the  Channel  Islands. 

A  simple  fundamental  is  the  reason  for  it:  the 
furnishing  of  more  nutriment  to  supply  the  needs 
of  the  young  plant. 

The  rate  of  seeding  is  dependent  entirely  on  the 
size  of  the  seed  piece  and  the  distance  of  planting. 
Growers  use  from  300  to  5,000  pounds  per  acre. 
The  practice  of  successful  growers  indicates  the 
best  policy  to  be: 

High  fcTtility  of  soil 

Close  planting 

Whole  seed  or  large  seed  pieces 

Heavy  rate  of  seeding  per  acre 


52  THE  POTATO 

At  Mt.  Sopris  Farm  it  has  been  found  that  it  is 
cheaper  to  grow  medium  sized  seed  in  large  quan- 
tities per  acre  (by  planting  in  rows  thirty-two 
inches  apart  and  hills  six  inches  apart),  store  it 
separately  and  plant  whole,  than  to  cut  seed. 
It  costs  $5  to  $6  per  acre  to  cut  seed,  and  there 
is  greater  danger  from  dry  rot  with  cut  than 
with   whole  seed. 

In  "The  Potato  Crop"  Mr.  David  Young, 
editor  of  the  North  British  Agriculturist,  of  Edin- 
burgh, Scotland,  and  one  of  the  foremost  agri- 
cultural authorities  in  Great  Britain,  gives  the  fol- 
lowing very  interesting  information  about  potato 
varieties : 

"If  in  the  first  two  centuries  (from  the  time  of 
its  introduction)  the  progress  of  potato  culture 
was  very  slow  in  the  United  Kingdom,  a  different 
state  of  matters  prevailed  in  the  early  part  of  the 
nineteenth  century.  By  that  time  the  valuable, 
or  rather  we  should  say  invaluable,  properties  of 
the  potato  crop  had  been  fully  realized,  and  its 
culture  on  a  large  scale  was  the  order  of  the  day 
throughout  the  country.  The  plan  of  producing 
new  varieties  from  the  seeds  in  the  'plums'  or 
'apples'  was  w^ell  understood  also,  and  early  in 
that  century  there  were  numerous  different  vari- 
eties in  general  cultivation.  The  famous  whole- 
sale seed  firm  of  jMessrs.  Peter  Lawson  &  Son, 
Edinburgh,  which  still  retains  its  pristine  emi- 
nence in  the  Scottish  seed  trade,  was  then  de- 
voting great  attention  to  potato  culture,  and  in 
the  agricultural  museum,  which  was  located  in 
the  chambers  owned  and  occupied  by  the  High- 
land and  Agricultural  Society,  it  had  specimens 
of  over  100  different  varieties  on  exhibition. 


THE  POTATO  53 

"It  is  also  interesting  to  note  that  the  National 
Agricultural  Society  of  Scotland  was  a  pioneer  of 
progress  in  potato  culture.  In  1827  the  society 
awarded  a  medal  to  Mr.  Richard  Lowthian  Ross 
of  Staffold  Hall,  Cumberland,  for  bringing  out  a 
new  variety  of  potato  called  Staffold  Hall,  which 
that  gentleman  had  grown  successively  on  a  deep 
rich  soil,  approaching  clay,  for  a  long  period  and 
had  never  found  it  to  present  the  least  symptom  of 
curl  or  disease  of  any  kind,  either  on  its  foliage  or 
tubers,  and  its  produce  per  acre  he  has  found  in 
several  instances  to  exceed  thirty  tons. 

"In  the  premium  article  by  ]Mr.  Peter  Lawson  on 
'The  Comparative  Value  of  Different  Varieties  of 
the  Potato,'  published  in  Vol.  IX.  of  the  society's 
Transactions,  it  is  recorded  that  the  *  Staffold  Hall, ' 
or '  Late  Wellington, '  as  it  is  sometimes  termed,  was 
found  superior  in  specific  gravity  and  quantity  of 
starch  contained  in  a  given  weight  of  tubers  to  any 
of  the  others  there  enumerated,  amounting  to 
seventy-three.  It  would  rather  seem  that  if  a 
potato  answering  the  description  of  the  Staffold 
Hall  were  to  be  brought  out  nowadays  it  would  be 
hailed  with  universal  acclamation  as  the  very 
kind  that  potato  raisers  and  potato  growers  had 
for  many  long  years  been  looking  for  and  striving 
to  obtain. 

"In  the  'Agriculturist's  Manual,'  published  in 
1836  by  Messrs.  Peter  Lawson  &  Son,  'Seedsmen 
and  Nurserymen  to  the  Highland  and  Agricultural 
Society,'  there  is  given  a  list  of  140  different  vari- 
eties in  ordinary  cultivation,  and  full  particulars 
are  given  respecting  each  variety  under  the  differ- 
ent heads  of  '  Habit  of  growth, ' '  Foliage, ' '  Flower, ' 
'Shape  of  tubers,'  'Color  and  other  peculiarities 
of  skin,' 'Fold  of  increase,' 'General  remarks'  and 


54  THE  POTATO 

'Weight of  starch  in  one  pound  of  tubers.'  From 
these  'General  remarks'  we  learn  that  some 
varieties  were  then  marked  as  'healthy,'  'pretty 
healthy,  or  'very  healthy,'  while  others  were 
marked  as  'unhealthy'  or  'very  unhealthy,'  and 
quite  a  number  were  marked  as  'subject  to  curl,' 
or  'very  subject  to  curl.'  The  'weight  of  starch 
in  one  pound  of  tubers'  was  found  to  vary  im- 
mensely in  the  different  varieties,  the  range  of  vari- 
ation being  from  408  to  903  'grains  troy.'  Two 
varieties  —  namely,  the  Sawyer's  Red  and  the 
Late  Jersey  —  were  found  to  show  903  grains  troy 
of  starch  for  one  pound  of  tubers,  but  both  these 
varieties  were  branded  as  '  rather  waxy  and  indif- 
ferent in  flavor. ' 

"It  is  worthy  of  note  also  that  in  those  early 
days  the  intelligent  growers  of  potatoes  were  pos- 
sessed of  a  good  deal  of  knowledge  which  is  fre- 
quently supposed  to  be  the  product  of  modern 
experiment  and  experience.  Thus  we  find  in  the 
first  edition  of  Johnson's  'Dictionary  of  Modern 
Gardening '  that  the  plan  of  sprouting  seed  tubers 
in  trays  or  boxes  for  the  growing  of  early  potatoes 
was  well  known  and  widely  practised,  particularly 
in  Cheshire,  'where  they  are  celebrated  for  the 
early  production  of  potatoes. '  The  same  author- 
ity was  also  very  emphatic  in  regard  to  the  impor- 
tance of  using  fairly  full-sized  uncut  tubers  for 
seed,  and  of  conserving  the  first  sprout  of  the  seed 
by  way  of  preventing  the  loss  of  stamina  inevitably 
caused  by  the  breaking  of  the  first  sprouts;  and  he 
was  equally  emphatic  in  regard  of  using  potatoes 
that  had  been  brought  from  a  district  that  was 
higher  and  cooler  than  that  in  which  it  was  to  be 
planted.  It  was  also  known  in  those  early  days 
that  tubers  which  had  been  harvested  before  being 


THE  POTATO  55 

fully  matured  were  better  adapted  for  seeding  pur- 
poses than  those  which  had  been  fully  matured 
before  being  harvested.  When  it  is  added  that  in 
those  early  days  the  average  yield  of  the  crop  was 
eight  tons  per  acre,  or  quite  two  tons  more  than  the 
official  estimate  of  the  crop  nowadays,  it  will  be 
seen  that  these  potato  growers  of  seventy  years 
ago  were  not  so  very  far  behind. 

"The  year  1845  was  a  fateful  one  in  the  history 
of  potato-growing.  In  that  year  the  dreaded 
disease  Phytophthora  infestans  (late  blight) 
wrought  sad  havoc  among  the  potato  crops 
throughout  the  country. 

'"The  disease,'  as  it  is  called  by  potato  growers 
—  other  diseases  in  potatoes  are  always  indicated 
by  a  specific  name,  but  this  one  is  'the  disease' — was 
by  no  means  a  new  pest,  for,  according  to  numer- 
ous old  records,  it  had  year  by  year  done  more  or 
less  damage  to  the  potato  crops  of  the  United 
Kingdom  and  the  Continent.  But  the  disease  had 
rarely,  if  ever  before,  been  so  virulent  as  it  was  in 
1845.  But  worse  was  yet  to  come,  and  in  the  fol- 
lowing season,  which  was  wet  and  ungenial,  the 
disease  fell  like  a  pestilence  on  the  crops  and  prac- 
tically ruined  them.  The  ruin  of  the  potato  crop 
of  that  year  had  one  most  important  permanent 
effect  on  the  agriculture  of  the  kingdom,  for  it  led 
to'^the  abolition  of  the  protective  duties  which  had 
up  till  then  been  levied  on  all  foodstuffs  imported 
from  abroad. 

"The  potato  growers  of  Great  Britain  suffered 
heavy  financial  loss  through  the  failure  of  the  crop 
in  1846,  and  for  a  time  they  lost  confidence  in  their 
own  ability  to  fight  the  battle  against  the  dreaded 
disease,  so  that  the  area  under  this  crop  was  for 
some  years  greatly  reduced.     But  just  as  a  crisis 


56  THE  POTATO 

of  any  sort  in  public  affairs  usually  brings  to  the 
front  some  strong  man  capable  of  dealing  with  it, 
so  this  crisis  in  the  history  of  the  potato-growing 
industry  in  the  United  Kingdom  brought  to  the 
front  a  man  who  rendered  incalculable  service  to 
his  country  and  his  fellow-men.  This  was  Wil- 
liam Paterson  of  Dundee. 

"As  a  market  gardener  and  potato-seed  grower 
on  a  large  scale  Mr.  Paterson  had  been  experi- 
menting for  twenty  years  previously  in  the  raising 
of  new  varieties  of  potatoes;  but  all  the  new  vari- 
eties which  he  had  brought  out  prior  to  1846  had 
gone  down  before  the  disease,  like  all  the  others  in 
that  disastrous  year.  But  the  failure  of  his  exer- 
tions in  that  way  only  caused  him  to  redouble  his 
energies,  with  the  fixed  determination  to  discover 
the  means  of  either  preventing  the  scourge  alto- 
gether or  at  least  of  checking  its  ravages  to  a 
material  degree.  With  the  zeal  of  a  devotee  he 
set  himself  to  investigate  the  nature  and  cause  of 
the  disease,  while  carrying  on  at  the  same  time  his 
experiments  in  the  way  of  raising  new  varieties 
wdiich  should  show  sufficient  constitutional  vigor 
to  hold  the  disease  at  bay. 

"For  several  years  Mr.  Paterson  worked  on  with 
little  success  and  less  encouragement,  but  at 
length,  in  the  second  half  of  the  '50's,  he  brought 
out  the  Paterson's  Victoria,  which  proved  to  be 
not  only  a  splendid  cropper  of  excellent  quality, 
but  practically  immune  against  the  disease.  The 
success  of  the  Victoria  was  immediate  and  out- 
standing, and  very  soon  it  was  largely  grown  all 
over  the  country.  The  late  Queen  Victoria  wrote 
with  her  own  hand  a  letter  to  Mr.  Paterson  order- 
ing a  quantity  of  Paterson's  Victorias  for  planting 
on  the  royal  farms  at  Windsor,  and  that  letter  is 


THE  POTATO  57 

one  of  the  most  treasured  possessions  of  his  family 
to  this  day.  By  way  of  doing  honor  to  the  man 
whom  the  Queen  had  thus  dehghted  to  honor,  the 
landowners  and  farmers  of  Forfarshire  presented 
him  with  a  soHd  silver  epergne  and  a  claret  jug, 
which  are  also  carefully  treasured  in  the  family. 

"In  his  'Report  on  Experiments  in  Propagating 
New  and  Superior  Varieties  of  the  Potato  Plant, ' 
for  which  he  was  awarded  the  gold  medal  of  the 
Highland  and  Agricultural  Society  in  1869,  ]\Ir. 
Paterson  tells  the  story  of  his  hmg-continued  and 
costly  struggle  to  produce  a  variety  which  should 
be  distinguished  by  its  heavy-cropping,  good- 
cooking,  and  disease-resisting  qualities.  From 
this  report,  which  is  published  in  the  society's 
'Transactions'  of  1870,  we  quote  the  following 
extract : 

"  'My  own  conviction  regarding  the  potato  blight 
is  that  there  is  no  direct  cure  for  it,  but  that  it  is 
entirely  owing  to  atmospheric  action  in  tlie  plant, 
and  that  it  will  be  always  more  or  less  subject  to  it. 
From  this  time  (viz.,  1853)  I  determined  on  carry- 
ing out  my  original  idea  of  raising  and  improving 
seedling  varieties  from  the  plum  or  apple  of  vigor- 
ous and  healthy  tubers.  The  initial  difficulty  was 
very  great.  Potatoes  in  this  country  had  almost 
ceased  to  flower,  and  at  considerable  expense  I 
imported  them  from  England,  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope,  Australia,  America,  and  Calcutta,  from 
which,  as  w^ell  as  from  our  own  standard  kinds,  I 
selected  the  healthiest  tubers  and  planted  them  in 
a  field  of  newly  taken  in  land,  with  reed  manure, 
by  the  side  of  a  stream  where  the  atmosphere  was 
damp.  All  produced  flowers,  and  most  of  them 
"apples."  The  experiment  was  successful,  and 
from  the   seed  or  "apple"  I  produced   those  ne^v 


58  THE  POTATO 

and  improved  varieties  which  I  have  given  to  the 
pubHc,  and  Vvhich  are  acknowledged  to  be  at  home 
and  abroad  of  so  much  benefit  to  the  community. ' 
As  already  noted,  the  success  of  Paterson's  Vic- 
toria, and  several  other  new  varieties  raised  by 
him  in  the  way  described  above,  was  remarkable 
and  immediate.  But  the  scientific  methods  of 
booming  new  varieties  of  potatoes  were  not  known 
in  his  days,  and  Mr.  Paterson  himself  was  more 
concerned  about  doing  an  incalculable  and  per- 
manent service  to  his  fellow-men  than  he  was 
about  using  even  legitimate  means  of  snatching  a 
chance  of  making  a  fortune  for  himself;  and  not- 
withstanding all  the  tokens  of  public  appreciation 
bestowed  on  him  by  the  Queen  and  his  fellow- 
agriculturists,  he  actually  was  a  heavy  loser 
financially  through  his  efforts  to  bring  out  a  potato 
which  should  realize  his  ideal. 

"It  is  claimed  that  jNIr. Paterson,  the  raiser  of  the 
Victoria,  was  the  first  to  hybridize  or  cross-fertilize 
different  varieties  of  potatoes.  It  is  impossible  to 
say  whether  that  claim  be  well  founded  or  not, 
for  some  of  the  older  wa-iters  refer  in  a  vague  way 
to  crossing  different  varieties  of  potatoes,  and  Mr. 
Paterson,  in  his  report  to  the  Highland  and  Agri- 
cultural Society,  makes  no  specific  mention  of  hy- 
bridizing. But  as  the  science  of  botany  was  well 
understood  in  his  day,  and  as  he  devoted  so  much 
attention  and  skill  to  the  propagation  of  different 
varieties,  it  is  quite  likely  that  he  followed  the 
principle  of  cross-fertilization.  It  may  be  well, 
therefore,  at  this  stage  to  give  a  brief  account  of  the 
system  which  is  now  so  largely  followed  in  the 
cross-fertilization  of  potatoes. 

"It  will  be  noted  that  Mr.  Paterson  in  his  report 
to  the  Highland    and  Agricultural  Society  says 


THE  POTATO  59 

that,  before  he  got  on  to  the  line  of  experiment 
which  1(  d  up  to  the  production  of  the  Victoria, 
'potatoes  in  this  country  had  ahnost  ceased  to 
flower,'  let  alone  bearing  'apples'  or  'plums.' 
Whether  that  was  due  to  the  loss  of  constitutional 
vigor,  or  to  the  fact  that  through  the  process  of 
selection,  the  varieties  which  expend  all  their 
energies  on  the  production  of  tubers  and  not  on  the 
production  of  'apples'  had  come  to  be  the  only 
kind  generally  grown,  cannot  now^  be  determined. 
And  here  we  may  note  a  somewhat  remarkable  fact 
in  this  connection.  Many  years  ago  Mr.  John 
Wilson,  Chapelhill,  grew  a  variety  of  potatoes 
which  regularl}^  produced  a  full  crop  of  'apples.' 
Mr.  Wilson  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the  plants 
could  not  possibly  produce  such  a  heavy  crop  as 
they  could  otherwise  do  if  a  great  part  of  their 
energy  was  expended  in  the  production  of  '  apples, ' 
and  by  way  of  experiment  he  set  his  'hands'  to 
snip  the  blooms  off  the  plants  in  a  few  acres  situ- 
ated in  the  centre  of  the  field.  The  result  was  that 
the  part  of  the  field  so  treated  yielded  a  crop  which 
was  quite  two  tons  per  acre  heavier  than  that 
yielded  by  the  same  variety  in  the  other  parts  of 
the  field  which  were  not  so  treated.  But  in  the 
evolution  of  heavy-cropping  varieties  '  apple '- 
bearing  varieties  are  now  very  few  and  far  between. 
"In  the  scientific  process  of  hybridizing,  the 
anthers  have  first  of  all  to  be  removed  at  an  earlv 
stage  of  the  flowering  process  in  order  to  prevent 
the  pollen  produced  on  them  from  lighting  on  the 
pistil.  Care  must  also  be  taken  to  prevent  the  pol- 
len of  any  neighboring  plants  from  lighting  on  the 
pistil  of  the  plant  to  be  impregnated.  Then  the 
pollen  collected  from  the  anthers  of  the  plant  to  be 
used  as  the  'male'  in  the  crossing  process  has  to 


60  THE  POTATO 

be  dusted  on  the  pistil  which  is  to  be  impregnated. 
Care  must  also  be  taken  that  no  other  pollen  is 
allowed  to  get  near  that  pistil.  Some  hybridizers 
put  a  glass  vase  over  the  cross-fertilized  plant, 
and  others  follow  the  plan  of  tying  a  muslin  bag 
over  t'he  pistil  for  the  same  purpose. 

*'One  difficulty  that  often  confronts  the  hybrid- 
izer is  that  the  plant  he  wants  to  use  as  a  'male' 
may  not  be  in  bloom  at  the  time  that  the  plant  he 
wants  to  use  as  a  '  female '  is  ready  for  the  impreg- 
nating process.  Another  difficulty  is  tlxat,  owing 
to  the  'apple'-bearing  capacity  having  been  almost 
entirely  bred  out  of  the  heaviest  cropping  varieties, 
the  plant  may  not  produce  any  'apples'  though  the 
pistil  has  been  duly  impregnated.  The  taking  off 
of  all  the  blooms  but  the  one  to  be  impregTLated  has 
a  marked  effect  in  the  way  of  making  the  plant 
produce  'apples.'  Some  hybridizers  pick  away  the 
growling  tubers  from  the  roots  for  the  purpose  of 
causing  the  plant  to  expend  its  energy  in  the  pro- 
duction of  'apples'  in  place  of  tubers.  With  all 
these  devices,  however,  the  hybridizer  may  pol- 
linate twenty  different  blooms,  and  consider  him- 
self very  lucky  if  he  gets  'apples'  on  one  or  two  of 
them.  When  the  'apples'  are  full-grown  they  are 
gathered  and  the  seed  washed  out  from  the  sur- 
rounding juice,  each  'apple'  containing  from  100  to 
300  seed. 

"The  seed  are  sown  in  fine  rich  mould  in  a  green- 
house in  the  early  spring,  and  after  they  have 
sprouted  the  young  plants  are  planted  out  in  the 
garden  or  elsewhere.  Each  of  these  transplanted 
plants  will  produce  a  few  tubers,  mostly  all  of  small 
size.  The  first  year's  seedHngs  are  not  invariably 
of  small  size,  however.  Thus  at  the  first  show  of 
the  National  Potato    Society  at  London  in  1904 


THE  POTATO  CI 

the  Sir  John  Llewelljni  Challenge  Cup  for  the  best 
collection  of  potatoes  was  awarded  to  Messrs. 
Sutton  &  Sons  for  a  collection  of  fifty  different 
varieties,  which  included  a  selection  of  seedlings 
grown  direct  from  the  'apple'  seed  in  the  same 
year,  these  seedlings  being  for  the  most  part  of 
quite  the  size  ordinarily  obtained  from  the  plant- 
ing of  full-sized  'sets.'  Last  year  also  Doctor 
Wilson,  the  lecturer  on  agriculture  at  St.  Andrews 
University,  who  has  devoted  much  attention  to 
the  scientific  hybridizing  of  farm  plants,  had  an 
'apple'  seed  planted  in  March  which  in  October 
showed  a  yield  of  six  pounds  one  ounce  of  fairly 
full-sized  tubers. 

"The  tubers  of  the  seedlings  in  the  first  year 
from  'apple'  seed  generally  show  a  great  variety  of 
type,  and  even  of  color,  'blues'  and  'reds'  being 
quite  common  in  first  year's  seedlings,  even  from 
seed  produced  by  the  cross-fertilizing  of  two  white- 
skinned  and  white-fleshed  varieties.  Then  the 
process  of  selection  begins,  and  has  to  be  continued 
for  several  years  until  the  types  selected  are  prop- 
erly fixed.  A  vast  amount  of  patience  is  required 
for  this  work,  as  very  frequently  a  seedling  which 
gives  great  promise  in  its  second,  third,  or  even 
fourth  year  has  eventually  to  be  discarded  on 
account  of  its  failing  to  come  up  to  the  promise  of 
its  earlier  years. 

"The  Victoria  and  other  new  varieties  brought 
out  by  Mr.  William  Paterson  'held  the  field'  for 
a  good  many  years,  but  in  process  of  time  they 
l)ogan  to  lose  their  pristine  vigor.  There  were 
others,  however,  who  took  up  the  work  that  Mr. 
Paterson  had  expended  so  nuich  zeal  upon,  and 
one  of  the  most  notable  of  these  workers  was  ]\lr. 
John    Nicol,    then    of    the    Ochterlony    Gardens, 


62  THE  POTATO 

Forfarshire,  who  in  the  early  '70's  brought  out 
the  Champion,  which  was  a  heavy  cropper  of 
fair  quahty  and  had  great  disease-resisting  power. 
In  the  course  of  a  few  years  this  variety  was  very 
largely  grown  in  Scotland  as  well  as  in  Ireland. 

"Early  in  the  '70's  also  a  number  of  new 
varieties  were  imported  from  America,  and  from 
one  of  these  —  the  Early  Rose  —  crossed  with 
Paterson's  Victoria,  there  was  produced  the  Mag- 
num Bonum,  which  was  brought  out  by  the  Messrs. 
Sutton  in  1876.  The  Magnum  Bonum  was  a  cap- 
ital cropper,  of  excellent  quality  and  great  capacity 
for  resisting  disease.  In  a  short  time  it  took  the 
leading  place  among  all  the  varieties  grown  in 
England. 

"A  series  of  wet  seasons,  culminating  in  the  dis- 
astrous season  of  1879,  wrought  great  havoc 
among  the  crops  of  the  country,  particularly  in 
England.  A  departmental  committee  w^as  ap- 
pointed to  investigate  the  whole  question  of  pro- 
ducing new  varieties,  and  they  recommended  that 
parliament  should  initiate  and  subsidize  experi- 
ments designed  to  produce  new  and  disease-proof 
varieties;  but  this  recommendation  was  never 
acted  on.  Lord  Cathcart,  in  commenting  on  this 
report,  states:  'All  potatoes  have  degenerated  in 
their  disease-resisting  powers.  A  variety  from 
seed  takes  four  to  six  years  for  its  establishment, 
and  under  the  most  favorable  circumstances  a  good 
variety  may  be  expected  to  degenerate  in  twenty 
years.  The  production  of  new  varieties  is  of  na- 
tional importance. ' 

"Through  the  influence  of  Lord  Cathcart,  Mr.  J. 
G .  Baker,  the  eminent  botanist,  was  led  to  make  an 
exhaustive  study  of  the  genus  Solanum,  in  order  to 
advise  as  to  the  relation  of  the  cultivated  varieties 


THE  POTATO  63 

to  the  various  wild  species  found  in  the  American 
continent,  preparatory  to  hybridizing  experi- 
ments in  which  these  wild  species  might  be  used. 
As  a  result  of  his  investigations,  detailed  in  his 
'  Review  of  the  Tuber-Bearing  Species  of  Solanum, ' 
he  recommended  the  crossing  of  the  cultivated 
varieties  with  the  Darwin  potato,  Solanum  Maglia, 
from  the  Chonos  Archipelago,  and  the  Uruguay 
potato,  Solanum  Commersoni.  Lord  Cathcart  fur- 
nished specimens  of  the  S.  Maglia  to  the  Messrs. 
Sutton  for  crossing  purposes,  but  the  produce 
obtained  from  crossing  the  best  cultivated  varieties 
with  the  S.  Maglia  were  far  behind  in  appearance, 
crop,  and  quality.  The  cross  with  the  Commer- 
soni was  attempted  year  after  year,  but  without 
success. 

"  During  these  years  of  investigation  and  experi- 
ment, however,  the  hybridizer,  like  the  school- 
master, had  been  abroad.  Many  excellent  new 
varieties  were  brought  out  by  the  Messrs.  Sutton, 
whose  name  is  synonymous  with  excellence  and 
quality  in  every  department  of  farm  and  garden 
seeds.  Numerous  other  enthusiasts  in  the  same 
line  added  their  quota  to  the  national  stock,  but 
all  through  the  '80's  the  Champion  and  the  Mag- 
num continued  to  hold  the  leading  places.  But  in 
England  in  particular  the  crops  were  often  very 
disappointing.  The  English  growers  had  not  then 
learned  the  lesson  so  well  known  by  the  early 
Scotch  growers  of  getting  a  change  of  seed  from 
the  colder  and  later  climate  of  Scotland. 

"In  the  end  of  the  '80's  public  attention  began 
to  be  attracted  to  the  new  varieties  raised  by  ^Ir. 
Findlay,  then  of  Markinch,  Fifeshire.  His  first 
success  was  the  Bruce,  which  gave  excellent 
results  for  a  time.     Later  on  he  followed  with  the 


64  THE  POTATO 

Up-to-Date  and  the  British  Queen,  both  of  which 
were  excellent  varieties.  At  one  time  it  seemed 
as  if  both  these  varieties  would  have  to  be  dis- 
carded on  account  of  disease,  but  they  seemed  to 
recover  their  vigor  and  reputation.  In  fact,  the 
Up-to-Date,  though  it  has  now  been  before  the 
public  for  some  fourteen  years,  is  still  probably  the 
variety  most  largely  grown  throughout  the  coun- 
try. Shortly  after  it  was  brought  out  it  was  grown 
on  a  large  scale  on  Lord  Rosebery's  home  farms 
at  Dalmeny,  and  the  enormous  crops  of  Dates 
then  produced  —  which  certainly  were  grown  on 
exceptionally  excellent  and  lavishly  manured  soil 
—  helped  greatly  to  bring  the  Date  into  public 
favor.  The  Langworthy,  brought  out  by  Mr. 
Niven  of  Madderty,  Crieff,  about  the  same  time 
as  the  Up-to-Date,  is  a  variety  of  exceptional  cook- 
ing quality,  but  is  not  so  heavy  a  cropper,  though 
it  generally  commands  a  higher  price  per  ton. 
Other  varieties,  such  as  the  Scottish  Triumph 
(raised  by  Mr.  Gemmell,  Flakefield,  Hamilton), 
the  Crofter,  and  the  Factor  (raised  by  Mr.  Chap- 
man, Bathgate),  the  Dalmeny  Hero  (raised  by  Mr. 
John  Hunter,  F.  I.  C),  and  many  others,  have 
their  backers  as  the  main  crop  varieties  most  ap- 
proved by  them. 

"So  matters  stood  at  the  end  of  the  nineteenth 
and  the  beginning  of  the  twentieth  century.  Then 
there  was  brought  about  the  great  Potato  Boom, 
which  may  well  take  its  place  in  history  along  with 
the  South  Sea  Bubble.  The  circumstances  at  the 
time  were  all  in  favor  of  those  who  worked  up  the 
boom,  for  in  1902,  and  still  more  so  in  the  following 
year,  the  season  was  very  unfavorable  for  the  po- 
tato crop  in  the  United  Kingdom  as  well  as  on  the 
Continent,  so  that  prices  for  sound    tubers  ruled 


THE  POTATO  65 

high;  and  those  who  were  fortunate  enough  to 
have  large  and  sound  crops  —  as  many  of  the 
farmers  in  Scothxnd  were  —  reaped  a  golden  har- 
vest in  each  of  these  years.  The  methods  and 
agencies  by  which  it  (the  boom)  was  worked  were 
those  so  well  known  and  so  frequently  resorted  to 
by  the  Bulls  and  the  Bears  of  the  Stock  Exchange. 
In  the  centre  of  the  boom  were  two  new  varieties, 
which  were  declared  to  be  immense  croppers  and 
practically  immune  against  the  disease.  During 
the  winter  of  1902-1903  prices  for  one  of  these  va- 
rieties were  forced  up  to  an  unprecedented  level. 
But  at  the  end  of  the  following  season,  when  the  dis- 
ease was  again  very  prevalent  and  prices  for  sound 
tubers  were  abnormally  high,  a  perfect  frenzy  for 
new  varieties  seemed  to  seize  upon  growers.  Day 
by  day  and  week  by  week  the  reading  public  were 
informed  that  some  prominent  grower  or  other  had 
bought  a  tuber  of  one  of  these  new  varieties  at 
$100,  $250,  or  $500,  and  as  these  reports  increased 
the  delirium  of  buyers  increased.  Some  of  these 
reported  purchases  of  tubers  at  more  than  their 
weight  in  gold  were  undoubtedly  genuine;  and  in  a 
lawsuit  regarding  the  non-delivery  of  a  stone  (14 
pounds)  of  one  of  these  new  varieties  in  the  spring  of 
1904  evidence  was  led  to  show  that  three  pounds  of 
that  precious  stone  had  been  sold  before  hand  at 
$800  per  pound !  The  public  appetite  for  new  vari- 
eties seemed  to  be  insatiable  at  the  time,  and  scores 
of  new  varieties  —  most  of  which  were  old  friends 
with  new  names  —  were  rushed  upon  the  mar- 
ket and  eagerly  snapped  up  at  fabulous  prices  by 
growers. 

"Even  at  the  termination  of  the  ])lanting  season 
of  1904  the  delirium  had  not  subsided.  The  boom- 
ers had  still  another  arrow  in  their    quiver,  and 


66  THE  POTATO 

they  shot  that  shaft  with  far-reaching  aim.  Miles 
of  greenhouses  were  rushed  up  for  the  purpose  of 
'forcing'  tubers  of  the  $800  per  pound  variety, 
and  the  pubhc  was  conjured  to  buy  shoots  or 
sprouts  of  that  and  other  varieties  at  $20  each. 
Thousands  of  farmers  and  gardeners  who  could 
not  afford  to  buy  a  pound  of  tubers  at  $800  per 
pound  rushed  to  buy  these  precious  shoots  at 
from  $10  to  $20  each.  One  developer  boasted 
that  he  had  taken  1,000  shoots  from  a  single  tuber, 
so  that  if  he  had  sold  all  these  at  an  average  of 
$15  each  he  would  have  made  $15,000  off  a  single 
tuber,  and  had  that  precious  tuber  left  to  grow  a 
further  crop  with. 

"But  the  potato  harvest  of  1904  found  the 
growers  of  new  and  high-priced  varieties  in  a  ver^'' 
different  frame  of  mind.  The  precious  shoots 
which  they  had  bought  at  from  $10  to  $20  apiece 
had  each  and  all  of  them  yielded  a  caricature 
of  a  crop,  as  the  merest  tyro  in  botanical  science 
and  farm  practice  could  have  told  them  would  be 
the  case.  Most  of  the  new,  or  so-called  new, 
varieties  had  also  proved  to  be  quite  as  susceptible 
to  the  disease  as  the  older  varieties.  And  above 
all,  the  general  crop  of  the  country  was.  a  very  full 
one,  so  that  prices  ruled  very  low.  Then  there  was 
a  rush  to  sell  for  seed  the  stocks  which  had  been 
bought  at  fabulous  prices,  but  the  demand  had 
gone  off  and  the  slump  came.  The  following  year 
—  1905,  that  is  —  was  also  a  favorable  one  for  the 
potato  crop,  and  on  account  of  the  heavy  yield 
prices  were  low.  The  new  varieties  rushed  upon 
the  market  two  years  before  had,  as  a  rule,  proved 
no  better  than  any  of  the  well-tried  standard 
^^arieties,  and  some  which  were  undoubtedly  new 
varieties  developed  a  fatal  facility  for  going  wrong 


THE  POTATO  67 

in  the  pits,  though  they  looked  quite  sound  when 
Hfted.  The  result  is  that  at  the  present  time  po- 
tato growers  are  greatly  at  a  loss  as  to  what  variety 
they  should  plant,  and  they  are  cautious,  even  to 
the  verge  of  suspicion,  as  to  the  purchase  of  any 
new  variety  whose  merits  as  a  cropper  and  disease- 
resister  have  not  been  fully  proved  on  a  large  scale, 
and  for  at  least  a  couple  of  years. 

"But  while  the  potato  boom  was  being  shot  up 
by  scientific  and  other  devices  on  its  rocket-like 
course,  there  were  scientists  in  Ireland  engaged  in 
experimental  work  which  was  destined  to  be  of 
great  and  permanent  interest  to  potato  growers. 
The  Department  of  Agriculture  and  Technical 
Instruction  for  Ireland  —  a  Board  backed  with 
ample  funds  and  staffed  with  able  and  energetic 
men  —  had  been  most  successfully  carrying  on  a 
great  work  for  the  advancement  of  the  agricultural 
and  other  industries  of  Ireland.  That  experimen- 
tal and  demonstration  work  carried  on  by  the  Irish 
department  was  destined  to  be  of  paramount  im- 
portance to  potato  growers  in  Great  Britain  as  well 
as  in  Ireland.  The  potato  crop  covers  such  a  vast 
area  in  Ireland,  and  is  so  staple  a  food  of  the  Irish 
peasantry,  that  the  department  wisely  devoted  a 
great  part  of  its  resources  toward  the  development 
of  the  potato-growing  industry.  The  chief  scien- 
tific adviser  of  the  Irish  department  is  Professor 
J.  R.  Campbell,  a  young  and  very  able  Scotsman, 
who  was  formerly  assistant  lecturer  on  agriculture 
at  the  Glasgow  Agricultural  College  before  being 
appointed  Professor  of  Agriculture,  first  at  the 
Lancashire  Agricultural  College,  and  afterward  at 
the  Yorkshire  College.  Professor  Campbell,  while 
engaged  as  lecturer  on  agriculture  for  the  Glasgow 
Agricultural  College,  was  well  acquainted  with  the 


68  THE  POTATO 

principles  and  practice  so  profitably  followed  by 
the  skilful  and  enterprising  farmers  on  the  Ayr 
and  Girvan  coasts,  and  other  parts  of  the  southwest 
of  Scotland,  in  the  growing  of  early  potatoes  for 
the  early  market,  and  on  his  being  translated  to 
Ireland  he  soon  decided  to  make  a  vigorous  effort 
in  the  way  of  stimulating  the  Irish  growers  to  take 
up  that  same  very  profitable  business,  as  Ireland, 
owing  to  its  earlier  and  milder  climate,  was  even 
better  suited  than  the  seaboard  of  Ayrshire  for  the 
production  of  early  potatoes  in  the  month  of  June, 
when  prices  for  new  potatoes  are  always  at  their 
highest. 

"Knowing  full  well  the  outstanding  abilities  of 
Mr.  Wallace,  Terreglestown,  Dumfries,  as  a  highly 
successful  grower  of  both  early  and  main-crop 
potatoes,  Professor  Campbell  secured  in  1900  the 
services  of  Mr.  Wallace  to  deliver  an  annual  course 
of  lectures  in  Ireland,  and  supervise  numerous 
experimental  and  demonstration  areas  for  the 
department  in  Ireland.  This  experimental  and 
demonstration  work  proved  a  great  success. 

*'The  system  of  sprouting  seed  tubers  of  the 
earliest  varieties  in  boxes  during  the  winter  and 
planting  them  out  early  in  spring,  which  was  fol- 
lowed in  Cheshire  in  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth 
century  and  has  long  been  followed  in  Ayrshire 
and  the  west  coast  of  Scotland,  produced  for  the 
Irish  growers  a  good  crop  which  was  ready  for 
harvesting  in  the  early  part  of  June  before  even 
the  Ayrshire  crops  were  ready,  and  were  all  mar- 
keted at  highly  satisfactory  prices  before  the  time 
at  which  the  disease  makes  its  appearance,  while  a 
fairly  full  crop  of  roots,  cabbages,  or  other  produce 
could  be  afterward  grown  on  the  same  ground  the 
same  season.     This  was  a  new  and  very  profitable 


THE  POTATO  69 

venture  for  the  Irish  growers,  and  the  system  is 
spreading  so  rapidly  in  Irchmd  that  the  Uirge  quan- 
tities of  early  potatoes  now  annually  shipped  from 
Ireland  to  the  British  markets  are  very  sensibly 
affecting  the  prices  and  profits  realized  by  the 
growers  on  the  Ayrshire  and  west  coast  generally. 
The  official  report  of  the  Irish  department  showed 
that  the  crops  of  early  potatoes  in  Ireland  last  year 
had  been  all  marketed  at  prices  averaging  over  £30 
per  statute  acre. 

"It  was  probably  intended  at  first  that  the 
efforts  of  the  department  in  this  direction  should 
be  concentrated  on  the  development  of  the  early 
potato-growing  business.  But  the  experimental 
and  demonstration  work  of  the  department  broad- 
ened out  into  new^  fields  of  far-reaching  importance. 
The  crops  of  the  earliest  varieties  of  potatoes, 
when  the  seed  tubers  are  sprouted  in  boxes  and 
planted  early  in  early  districts,  are  usually  mar- 
keted before  the  disease  begins  to  make  its  ap- 
pearance in  the  fields.  For  some  years  the  Irish 
department  had  made  an  exhaustive  series  of 
experiments  in  spraying  the  late  or  main  crops 
with  Bouille  Bordelaise  or  sulphate  of  copper  solu- 
tion, and  had  proved  up  to  the  hilt  that  this  sys- 
tem was  of  incalculable  value  in  either  altogether 
preventing  or  at  least  very  materially  checking 
the  ravages  of  the  disease.  Professor  Campbell 
and  Mr.  Wallace  came  to  the  sound  conclusion  that 
no  variety  of  potato  which  was  then  on  the  market, 
or  was  ever  likely  to  be  on  the  market,  was  i)roof 
against  the  disease,  and  that  while  it  was  very 
desirable  to  give  a  preference  to  those  varieties 
which  showed  the  greatest  power  in  resisting  the 
disease  provided  their  flavor  and  yield  were  satis- 
factory, yet  the  best  plan  of  preventing  or  check- 


70  THE  POTATO 

ing  the  ravages  of  the  disease  was  to  systemati- 
cally follow  the  plan  of  spraying.  Mr.  Wallace  also 
well  knew  the  old  fact  which  had  been  stated  in  the 
'Dictionary  of  Modem  Gardening'  sixty  years 
before,  but  had  been  practically  forgotten  by 
growers  in  the  second  half  of  the  nineteenth 
century  —  namely,  that  it  was  not  only  most 
desirable  to  plant  good-sized  seed,  preferably  un- 
cut, but  it  was  also  of  the  first  importance  to  pre- 
serve the  first  bud  of  the  seed  tuber  in  order  to 
provide  against  loss  of  stamina  in  the  plant  through 
breaking  off  the  shoots.  He  therefore  proceeded 
to  prove  by  demonstration  on  the  field  what  he  had 
previously  proved  in  his  own  practice  at  Terregles- 
town,  that  it  was  a  most  profitable  plan  to  have 
the  seed  of  even  the  late  or  main-crop  potatoes 
sprouted  in  boxes  during  the  winter,  as  was  done  in 
the  case  of  the  early  varieties  for  the  early  market. 
"The  first  Irish  experiments  in  this  direction  in 
1902  were  very  conclusive,  as  the  crops  of  good- 
sized  seed  tubers  which  had  been  sprouted  in  boxes, 
and  had  their  sprouts  toughened  by  exposure  to 
light  and  air  before  being  planted,  were  not  only 
much  larger  in  yield  but  were  much  freer  from 
disease  than  those  which  had  not  been  so  treated, 
but  had  got  their  first  shoots  broken  off  by  handling 
at  the  time  of  planting.  The  department's  experi- 
ments showed  that  over  all  the  numerous  fields 
on  which  these  tests  as  between  boxed  and  un- 
boxed seed  had  been  conducted,  the  average  in- 
crease in  yield  obtained  from  the  boxed  seed  was 
over  100  bushels  per  acre.  A  similar  experiment 
conducted  in  the  following  year  at  the  Yorkshire 
College  farm  showed  precisely  similar  results,  and 
attracted  much  attention  in  England.  Year  after 
year  similar  experiments  were  conducted  in  Ireland 


THE  POTATO  71 

by  the  department,  and  in  every  year  the  results 
have  been  practically  the  same. 

''Further  experiments  conducted  by  the  depart- 
ment proved  that  not  only  was  there  a  great 
increase  in  yield  obtained  from  boxed  as  against 
unboxed  seed,  but  that  the  system  of  spraying 
with  the  sulphate  of  copper  solution,  if  efHciently 
and  timeously  carried  out,  had  not  only  a  most 
marked  effect  in  preventing  or  checking  disease, 
but  that  it  had  also  a  most  marked  further  effect 
in  prolonging  the  growing  period  of  the  crop,  and 
in  that  way  increasing  the  yield.  Mr.  Wallace 
unhesitatingly  and  emphatically  declared  his  set- 
tled conviction  that,  when  once  the  Irish  growers 
had  learned  to  box  and  spray,  the  Green  Isle,  with 
its  potato  area  of  600,000  acres  and  its  relatively 
small  population  of  4,250,000  souls,  would  be  able 
not  only  to  supply  the  wants  of  its  own  people, 
but  would  also  be  able  to  regularly  export  enor- 
mous quantities  to  the  British  markets  instead  of 
requiring  to  import  large  quantities,  as  had  often 
been  the  case  in  former  years.  The  Irish  depart- 
ment has  therefore  concentrated  its  efforts  on 
stimulating  and  encouraging  the  Irish  culti- 
vators to  box  and  spray,  and  the  Irish  growers  have 
been  quick  to  learn  a  lesson  which  promises  to  be 
so  very  profitable  to  them. 

"Last  year  the  Irish  growers  who  had  learned 
to  box  and  spray  had  very  heavy  and  sound  crops 
and  the  total  output  of  potatoes  in  the  Green  Isle 
was  so  heavy  and  plentiful  that  it  is  having  a  most 
decided  effect,  and  keeping  prices  at  a  very  low 
level  in  this  country.  There  seems  no  reason  to 
doubt  that  as  more  and  more  Irish  growers  are  led 
to  box  and  spray,  the  crops  grown  on  the  vast  area 
under  potatoes  in  Ireland  will  be  heavier  year  by 


72  THE  POTATO 

year,  and  the  effect  of  that  on  the  prices  in  the 
home  market  will  be  keenly  felt  by  British  growers. 
"Within  the  last  few  years  also  another  great 
change,  which  promises  to  increase  the  total  aver- 
age yield  of  the  potato  crops  of  Great  Britain,  has 
been  taking  place.  The  change  in  question  was 
due  to  what  may  be  called  the  rediscovery  of  a  fact 
which  was  well  known  to  the  gardeners  and  other 
growers  of  potatoes  more  than  half  a  century  ago 
—  namely,  that  in  getting  seed  potatoes  it  was 
always  desirable  to  get  them  from  a  colder  and 
later  district  and  climate  than  that  to  which  they 
were  taken.  In  comparatively  recent  years  many 
English  growers  frequently  obtained  potato  seed 
from  Scotland,  and  found  that  in  almost  every 
case  the  seed  tubers  grow^n  in  Scotland  yielded 
much  better  crops  than  those  obtained  from  the 
use  of  seed  grown  in  England.  The  great  yield 
of  crop  obtained  through  the  use  of  Scotch-grown 
seed  was,  however,  generally  ascribed  to  superior- 
ity of  variety,  as  the  tubers  taken  south  to  England 
for  seed  were  generally  of  a  different  variety  from 
those  previously  grown.  That,  however,  was 
not  the  correct  explanation.  Certain  it  is  that,  as 
a  general  rule,  seed  tubers  grown  in  the  colder  and 
later  climate  of  Scotland  give  much  better  results 
than  tubers  grown  in  the  warmer  and  earlier  cli- 
mate of  England.  Several  reasons  may  be  adduced 
in  partial  explanation  of  this  fact.  For  one  thing, 
owing  to  the  climate  of  Scotland  being  colder  and 
later  than  that  of  England,  the  potato  crop  in 
Scotland  is  not  usually  so  fully  ripened  when  it  is 
harvested  as  the  potato  crop  in  England  is  when 
harvested,  and  it  is  an  old  but  recently  redis- 
covered fact  that  potatoes  harvested  before  being 
fully  matured  are  much  better  for  seeding  purposes 


THE  POTATO  73 

than  potatoes  which  have,  in  a  way,  exhausted 
their  vitaHty  in  ripening.  For  another  thing, 
again  owing  to  the  cHmate  of  Scotland  being  colder 
and  later  than  that  of  England,  seed  tubers  taken 
from  Scotland  to  England  for  seeding  purposes 
are  not  usually  so  much  sprouted  as  those  in  the 
warmer  south  at  the  same  time  of  vear,  and  conse- 
quently  do  not  lose  so  much  of  their  stamina  and 
vitality  through  the  breaking  of  sprouts  in  hand- 
ling. 

"But  over  and  above  these  considerations  there 
is  undoubtedly  in  the  potatoes  grown  in  the  colder 
and  more  bracing  climate  of  Scotland  some  subtle 
force  which  makes  for  greater  constitutional  vigor 
and  habit  of  growth  than  is  characteristic  of  those 
grown  in  the  warmer  and  more  relaxing  climate  of 
England. 

"In  1903  Professor  Seton,  at  the  Yorkshire  Col- 
lege farm,  carried  out  an  experiment  on  this  point, 
and  found  that  seed  grown  in  Scotland,  when 
planted  in  Yorkshire,  showed  an  increase  of  crop 
to  the  extent  of  two  tons  per  acre,  and  was  much 
freer  from  disease  than  the  adjoining  crop  of  the 
same  variety  grown  from  native  seed.  Much 
attention  was  attracted  to  these  findings  at  the 
time;  but  since  then  they  have  been  very  fully  con- 
firmed, not  only  by  the  experience  of  hundreds  of 
English  growers,  but  also  hy  scientific  and  careful 
experiments  at  practically  all  the  agricultural  col- 
leges in  England.  At  the  Cambridge  University 
farm  Professor  Middleton  found  that  the  crop 
from  Scotch-grown  seed  was  so  vastly  heavier 
than  the  crop  from  native  seed  of  the  same  variety 
that  he  was  fairly  staggered  at  the  result,  and  half 
inclined  to  doubt  the  accuracy  of  his  own  findings. 
At  the  Northumberland  County  Council  farm  of 


74  THE  POTATO 

Cockle  Park,  Professor  Gilchrist  found  similar 
results,  but  found  that  these  were  only  in  accord- 
dance  with  the  experience  of  growers  seventy  or 
eighty  years  ago. 

"At  date  of  writing,  the  latest  series  of  experi- 
ments recorded  in  this  connection  is  a  most  ex- 
haustive one  from  the  Lancashire  County  Council 
farm,  where  four  different  tests,  all  in  duplicate, 
were  carried  out  with  wonderfully  uniform  results, 
which  led  the  experimenters  to  draw  the  following 
conclusion  —  viz.,  seed  potatoes  brought  from  a 
northern  to  a  southern  latitude  give  a  larger  crop 
than  those  from  a  southern  to  a  northern  latitude, 
the  difference,  according  to  this  experiment,  being 
on  the  average  about  one  hundred  bushels  per  acre. 

"If  the  English  growers  not  only  learn  to  box 
and  spray  as  the  Irish  farmers  are  learning  to  do, 
but  also  learn  that  seed  potatoes  brought  from  a 
northern  to  a  southern  latitude  give  a  crop  of  three 
tons  per  acre  more  than  English-grown  seed,  that 
will  all  make  for  a  greatly  increased  average  yield 
per  acre  in  England  and  a  comparatively  lower 
range  of  prices  per  ton. 

As  already  noted,  there  is  no  variety  of  potato 
on  the  market  which  is  not  more  or  less  susceptible 
to  the  disease,  though  undoubtedly  some  varieties 
show  much  greater  capacity  for  resisting  the 
disease  than  others.  It  is  also  a  notorious  fact 
that  many  of  the  new  varieties  of  potatoes  which 
have  been  put  on  the  market  within  the  last  few 
years  at  fabulous  prices,  as  being  practically  im- 
mune against  the  disease,  have  proved  to  be  quite 
as  liable  to  succumb  to  the  attack  of  the  dreaded 
fungus  as  any  of  the  well-proved  standard  vari- 
eties which  have  been  before  the  public  for  a  dozen 
years  or  more.     Judging  from  the  experience  of  the 


THE  POTATO  75 

past  century,  it  is  not  at  all  likely  that  a  potato  of 
good  quality  that  will  be  disease-proof  for  any  con- 
siderable number  of  years  will  ever  be  brought  out. 

"It  was  reported  from  France  last  year  that, 
after  many  unsuccessful  efforts,  a  cross  between 
the  cultivated  potato  and  the  wild  potato  — 
Solanum  Commersoni  —  had  been  brought  out 
and  gave  every  promise  of  high  disease-resisting 
power,  but  that  it  was  not  well  adapted  for  table 
use,  as  its  cooking  quality  left  much  to  be  desired. 
It  seems  clear  enough,  therefore,  that  growers  need 
not  rush  wildly  after  any  so-called  disease-proof 
new  variety  for  protection  against  the  Phytoph- 
thora  infestans,  but  that  they  should  follow  the 
lead  of  common  sense  and  science  in  the  preven- 
tion of  the  disease. 

"Planting  good-sized  tubers,  whose  first  sprouts 
have  been  carefully  preserved,  is  a  most  impor- 
tant matter  in  the  way  of  maintaining  the  con- 
stitutional vigor  of  the  plant.  As  a  matter  of 
course  also,  preference  should  be  given  to  those 
varieties  which  show  the  greatest  capacity  for 
resisting  the  disease  —  that  is  to  say,  if  their  crop- 
ping powers  and  cooking  qualities  are  up  to  the 
mark.  For  those  who  farm  in  the  warmer  and 
earlier  climate  south  of  the  Borders,  it  is  also  a 
most  important  fact,  as  was  urged  upon  the  at- 
tention of  growers  seventy  years  ago,  that  seed 
potatoes  should  be  brought  from  a  colder  and  later 
climate  than  that  in  which  they  are  to  be  planted. 
Seed  tubers  that  have  been  harvested  before  being 
fully  ripened  are  also  to  be  preferred." 


CHAPTER  VII 

SEED-BED   PREPARATION   AND    PLANTING 

SO  MUCH  depends  on  the  conditions  in  the 
different  districts,  that  seed  bed  preparation 
and  planting  methods  differ  somewhat. 

The  fundamentals,  however,  are  the  same  every- 
where. These  are  whatever  cultural  methods  are 
necessary  to  make  a  deep,  mellow  seed  bed  or  root 
nest.  The  success  of  the  crop  depends  on  the  size 
and  vigor  of  the  root  system. 

The  seed  should  be  planted  sufficiently  near  the 
surface  to  get  the  benefit  of  the  heat  of  the  sun,  and 
deep  enough  that  the  root  system  be  in  contact 
with  the  moist  earth. 

The  seed  bed  must  be  sufficiently  firm  that  the 
rootlets  come  immediately  in  contact  with  the  soil 
particles,  yet  open  enough  that  they  readily  pene- 
trate. 

Humus  —  decayed  vegetable  matter  —  from 
every  source  is  an  essential  in  a  good  potato  soil. 
Legumes  and  barnyard  manure  are  valuable,  and 
decayed  turf,  from  meadows  or  pasture,  is  ideal 
for  potato  culture.  It  seems  to  "clean"  the  soil 
from  injurious  diseases,  and  because  it  has  grown 
in  it  is  thoroughly  incorporated  in  the  entire  soil. 
All  vegetable  matter  should  be  plowed  under  the 
fall  previous  to  the  cropping  season. 

The  cover  crop,  or  green  manure — a  mass  of 
vegetation  turned  under  in  a  green  state  —  has  a 
wonderfully  beneficial  effect  on  soils,  both  for  the 

76 


THE  POTATO  77 

fertility  it  furnishes  and  the  bettered  meclianical 
condition.  Some  of  the  best  cover  crops  are  the 
clovers  and  alfalfa,  peas,  vetch,  rye,  and  Italian 
Rae  grass. 

If  the  manager  of  an  agricultural  proposition 
knows  the  conditions  necessary  to  accomplish  a 
required  result,  his  problem  is  to  bring  about  these 
proper  conditions.  When  Prof.  F.  H.  King,  one 
of  the  Avorld's  greatest  soil  authorities,  was  at  the 
head  of  the  Soil  Physics  Department  of  the  Agri- 
cultural College  of  the  University  of  Wisconsin, 
his  slogan  was  "Learn  to  know  why  —  for  this 
teaches  how  and  when. " 

The  philosophy  of  seed-bed  preparation  for 
potatoes  and  the  planting  of  the  crop  is  simply 
this : 

First.  The  soil  must  be  looSe  and  mellow  to  a 
sufficient  depth  to  make  it  possible  for  the  root 
system  to  spread  freely,  and  for  the  tubers  to  form 
readily  and  develop  uniformly  and  normally. 

Second.  The  soil  must  be  sufficiently  firm  that 
the  rootlets  may  come  in  contact  with  the  soil 
particles  from  which  the  nutriment  for  the  plant  is 
taken. 

Third.  There  must  be  sufficient  moisture,  but 
not  too  much. 

Fourth.  There  must  be  sufficient  fertility,  and 
it  nuisi;  be  in  such  available  form  that  the  plant 
can  use  it  readily. 

Fifth.  The  soil  must  be  warm  enough  at  plant- 
ing time  to  start  the  plant  vigorously  and  rapidly. 

All  of  these  conditions  in  the  nearest  possible 
perfection  are  necessary  for  the  i)roduction  of  the 
most  profitable  crops.  A  deficiency  in  any  one 
will  mean  loss. 

Thorough  seed-bed  preparation  kills  weeds  and 


78  THE  POTATO 

disease  germs.  The  killing  of  ^Yee(is  before  the 
seed  is  planted  makes  the  cultivation  of  the  grow- 
ing crop  easier,  and  the  constant  stirring  and  work- 
ing of  the  soil  that  kills  the  weeds  aerates  and 
makes  possible  sun  action  that  kills  spores  and 
germs  of  disease.  On  Mt.  Sopris  Farm  the  soil  is 
often  worked  six,  seven,  and  eight  ti'mes  before 
planting.  When  the  good  results  that  are  accom- 
plished in  the  preparation  are  continued  by  deep 
cultivation  closely  following  planting,  a  splendid 
crop  is,  in  most  instances,  assured. 

Where  soils  are  badh'  infected  with  disease 
germs  it  is  best  to  rotate  the  potato  crop  with 
grains  and  grasses.  George  Sinclair,  farm  man- 
ager of  the  Earl  of  Rosebery's  Dalmeny  Farms, 
a  prominent  British  agriculturist,  says  that  one 
year  in  grain  and  three  in  sod  will  free  soils  of  most 
potato  diseases,  and  that  this  practice  will  make 
possible  the  continual  growing  of  big  crops. 

When  crops  are  to  be  grown  in  succession  it  is 
found  advantageous  to  open  up  the  furrows  in 
which  the  potatoes  are  to  be  planted  and  let  the 
sun  and  air  disinfect  them  for  a  day  or  longer 
before  planting. 

In  the  Twin  Falls  country  in  southern  Idaho, 
or  elsewhere  throughout  the  mountain  valleys  of 
the  Northwest,  potatoes  make  the  greatest  yields 
on  alfalfa  or  clover  sod.  It  is  always  best  to  grow 
them  in  a  crop  rotation  so  that  not  more  than  two 
crops  are  raised  in  succession  on  the  same  land. 
Growing  potatoes  puts  ground  in  excellent  tilth  for 
grain,  because  the  thorough  cultivation  makes 
large  quantities  of  plant  food  available  for  the 
rootlets  of  the  gi*ain  plants.  One  of  the  most  suc- 
cessful crop  rotations  practised  by  the  best  growers 
is  three  jnears  of  alfalfa  or  clover,  the  last  cutting 


THE  POTATO  79 

of  the  hay  the  third  year  being  plowed  under  ten 
inches  deep  in  tlie  fall;  two  years  in  potatoes,  and 
one  year  in  grain,  reseeding  to  grass  with  the 
grain. 

Good  crops  are  raised  on  both  spring  and  fall 
plowing,  but  the  latter  has  several  advantages. 
The  ground  can  be  plowed  to  a  greater  depth,  mak- 
ing a  deeper  seed  bed  and  a  larger  storage  capacity 
for  moisture.  The  weathering  through  the  winter 
makes  fertility  available,  so  that  the  same  soil,  if 
turned  up,  unweathered,  in  the  spring  would  con- 
tain less  food  in  shape  to  be  used  by  the  plant. 
Fall  plowing  for  potatoes  should  be  deep,  at  least 
eight  inches,  but  ten  is  better. 

Fall  plowing  in  north  latitudes  or  high  altitudes 
makes  possible  the  storage  of  heat  from  the  sun's 
rays.  Land  that  has  been  fall  plowed  is  often 
eight  to  ten  degrees  warmer  at  planting  time  than 
land  plowed  deep  in  the  spring  (thereby  turning  up 
a  cold  subsoil).  Fall  plowing,  in  this  way,  length- 
ens the  growing  season,  where  seasons  are  short, 
and  often  eliminates  fungous  development  that 
might  be  damaging  to  tender  potato  sprouts. 
Fall  plowing  should  generally  be  followed  by 
another  plowing  in  the  spring. 

In  the  Channel  Islands  the  potato  land  is  plowed 
eighteen  inches  deep  every  four  years. 

When  alfalfa  or  clover  sod  is  turned  under,  the 
plow  should  be  sharp  enough  to  cut  the  roots; 
otherwise  it  is  not  all  killed  and  the  grass  may  come 
up  later  and  bother  in  cultivation. 

If  manuring  is  done,  it  should  be  in  the  fall. 
Probably  the  best  time  to  apply  manure  is  to  the 
crop  that  precedes  the  potatoes  —  on  the  clover  or 
alfalfa  sod.  In  this  way  there  is  no  possibility  of 
the  fermenting  or  rotting  manure  making  a  breed- 


80  THE  POTATO 

ing  place  for  disease  that  might  affect  the  potato. 
If  manure  is  not  apphed,  similar  results  in  restor- 
ing vegetable  matter  and  fertility  to  the  soil  are 
obtained  by  the  turning  under  of  the  last  crop  of 
alfalfa  or  clover,  should  either  of  these  crops  pre- 
cede the  potatoes.  The  freezing  and  thawing  of 
the  average  winter  help  to  incorporate  the  vege- 
table matter  in  the  soil. 

In  the  spring  the  ground  should  be  thoroughly 
disked  and  harrowed,  making  a  fine,  firm  seed  bed. 

Small  acreages  (five  acres  or  less)  of  potatoes 
may  be  planted  by  hand  if  a  horse  planter  is  not 
available.  Good  potatoes  have  been  raised  by 
dropping  them  in  every  third  furrow  when  plowing 
the  field,  letting  the  next  furrow  cover  the  seed  to 
the  depth  of  four  to  six  inches. 

Any  larger  acreage  of  potatoes,  either  on  one 
farm  or  in  a  neighborhood,  is  best  planted  with  a 
modern  planter.  With  any  of  the  standard  two- 
horse  planters  five  or  six  acres  a  day  can  be  planted. 
In  many  places  in  the  West  potatoes  are  planted 
one  piece  in  a  place  in  rows  thirty-six  inches  apart, 
and  the  pieces  dropped  eight  to  fourteen  inches 
apart  in  the  row.  Planted  twelve  inches  apart  in 
the  row  makes  14,500  hills  to  the  acre.  If  con- 
ditions were  perfect,  and  each  hill  produced  ten 
marketable  potatoes  weighing  ten  ounces  each,  a 
yield  of  nearly  1,500  bushes  per  acre  would  be 
secured.  This  is  entirely  possible.  Fifteen  years 
ago  R.  A.  Chisholm  of  Del  Norte,  Col.,  grew  847 
bushes  to  the  acre,  winning  a  gold  purse  offered  by 
the  Orange  Judd  Farmer  for  the  best  measured  acre 
of  potatoes  in  the  United  States. 

Potatoes  that  are  infected  with  any  disease  should 
never  be  used  for  seed.  They  frequently  are,  how- 
ever— often  when  the  grower  is  not  aware  of  their 


THE  POTATO  81 

presence.  When  disease  is  present,  it  can  be  carried 
from  a  diseased  potato  tea  healthy  one  by  contact 
in  the  bin,  in  the  sack  or  in  a  planter.  The  knife 
used  in  cutting  seed  pieces  is  capable  of  spreading 
a  disease  throughout  an  entire  lot  of  seed,  and  the 
"picker"  on  a  picker  planter  may  do  the  same 
thing.  Disinfecting  potatoes,  as  indicated  in  the 
chapter  on  diseases,  is  a  good  practice  for  skin 
diseases,  but  does  not  kill  internal  germ  disease. 

In  southern  Idaho  potatoes  are  planted  from 
May  1st  to  July  1st.  Some  early  potatoes  are 
planted  as  soon  as  April  1st.  If  these  escape  the 
late  frosts  they  make  big  money,  generally  selling 
locally  at  from  three  to  five  cents  a  pound.  If  the 
frost  catches  them  the  ground  may  be  planted  to  a 
later  crop,  so  that  some  gamble  on  a  few  earlj'' 
potatoes  to  the  extent  of  the  price  of  seed  and  labor. 
There  is  always  a  possibility  of  a  killing  frost  dur- 
ing the  first  two  weeks  of  April. 

From  May  10th  to  June  10th  is  generally  con- 
sidered the  best  time  to  plant  the  main  crop  of  late 
potatoes  in  the  inter-mountain  West. 

With  the  horse  planters  a  furrow  two  to  four 
inches  deep  is  opened  by  a  pair  of  disks,  and  a  ridge 
about  two  inches  higher  than  the  level  of  the  field 
is  turned  up,  putting  the  seed  piece  under  about 
four  to  six  inches  of  earth. 

The  amount  of  seed  used  by  different  potato 
growers  varies  from  600  to  3,000  pounds  per  acre. 
The  growers  who  get  the  biggest  yields  plant  the 
most  seed.  The  largest  crop  ever  grown  in  the 
country  was  with  whole  seed,  using  nearly  3,000 
pounds  per  acre.  Good  yields  are  secured  by  using 
seed  cut  in  two  to  four  ounce  pieces  and  having 
one  to  two  eyes.  Commercial  seed  potatoes  weigh 
from  two  to  ten  ounces.     The  small  seed  is  not  cut 


82  THE  POTATO 

the  larger  generally  cut  about  four  times.  These 
work  well  in  the  planter  and  contain  suflScient  re- 
serve nourishment  to  give  the  plant  a  good  start. 
It  is  important  that  any  plant  to  give  the  best 
returns  in  yield  should  start  strong  and  vigorous. 
When  potatoes  are  planted  twelve  inches  apart  in 
the  row  with  rows  three  feet  apart,  if  a  perfect 
stand  is  secured  and  four  ounce  seed  used,  3,630 
pounds  of  seed  per  acre  is  required.  With  smaller 
seed  and  an  ordinary  stand,  which  is  far  from  per- 
fect, about  1,200  to  1,500  pounds  of  seed  is  used. 
The  big  seed  starts  a  plant  capable  of  making  a 
big  root  system.  The  size  of  the  root  system  bears 
a  close  relation  to  yield.  With  a  large  number  of 
roots  in  the  feeding  area  the  greatest  possible 
amount  of  food  can  be  secured  by  the  plant. 
Extremely  large  yields  are  secured  by  close  plant- 
ing. 

Lawrence  G.  Dodge,  in  "Bulletin  365"  on 
*'Farm  Management  in  Northern  Potato  Growing 
Sections,"  says: 

"The  general  methods  of  potato  culture  in  use 
have  developed  during  the  past  fifteen  years,  or  a 
little  more,  and  are  followed  with  considerable  uni- 
formity throughout  the  section.  The  rotation  is 
a  simple  one,  but  is  undoubtedly  the  foundation 
of  the  success  of  the  growers.  Potatoes  are  grown 
on  any  piece  of  land  only  one  year  as  a  rule  and  are 
followed  by  one  crop  of  oats  or  spring  wheat,  with 
which  are  sown  clover  and  timothy  for  hay.  This 
crop  is  cut  for  hay  one  year  by  many  of  the  best 
farmers  and  plowed  in  the  fall  for  a  new  potato 
crop.  The  furrow  is  usually  turned  to  a  depth  of 
seven  or  eight  inches,  and  on  most  of  the  farms 
this  work  is  done  with  a  reversible  sulky  plow,  an 


THE  POTATO  83 

implement  admirably  adapted  to  working  on  side 
hills.  Some  growers  like  their  hayfields  to  stand 
a  second  year  before  plowing,  but  rarely  longer 
than  that,  for  the  land  is  in  too  nmch  demand  for 
potatoes  to  continue  it  in  grass  more  than  two 
years. 

"The  sod,  usually  containing  a  large  amount  of 
clover  which  was  plowed  the  previous  fall,  is  har- 
rowed in  the  spring  as  soon  as  the  season  permits, 
usually  being  worked  over  thoroughly  four  times 
in  all  with  a  disk  harrow  followed  by  a  spring- 
tooth  harrow. 

"Planting  is  done  from  the  15th  or  20th  of  May 
to  the  1st  of  June,  using  about  five  barrels  of  seed 
to  the  acre  —  that  is,  thirteen  or  fourteen  bushels. 
The  seed  is  cut  by  hand  into  pieces  containing 
about  two  eyes  and  of  such  a  size  as  to  feed  readily 
through  a  planter,  and  is  dropped  by  the  planter  in 
rows  about  thirty-three  inches  apart  and  from 
twelve  to  fifteen  inches  apart  in  the  row,  so  that 
the  ground  is  entirelj^  occupied  with  the  crop,  and 
the  vines  in  midseason  meet  in  the  rows. 

"There  are  two  prevailing  types  of  planter,  in 
one  of  which  the  seed  pieces  are  distributed  by 
steel  forks  or  pickers,  and  in  the  other  by  pockets 
in  a  revolving  disk.  Both  types  are  two-horse 
machines,  the  former  being  operated  by  one  ma'b 
and  the  latter  requiring  a  second  man  to  attend  to 
the  seed  distribution.  Either  type  will  plant 
about  five  acres  per  day.  The  planter  at  the  same 
time  distributes  the  fertilizer,  from  1,200  to  1,500 
pounds  i)er  acre  usually  being  apj)lied.  This 
amount  of  fertilizer  can  be  safely  used  directly  in 
the  drills.  The  fertilizer  commonly  used  contains 
about  3  per  cent,  of  nitrogen,  7  or  8  per  cent,  of 
phosphoric  acid,  and  9  or  10  per  cent,  of  potash. " 


84  THE  POTATO 

Chas.  D.  Woods,  Director  Maine  Agricultural 
Experiment  Station,  in  an  address  before  the  New 
Jersey  State  Board  of  Agriculture,  said: 

*' While  potato  growing  is  somewhat  a  matter  of 
soil  and  climate,  it  is  even  more  dependent  upon 
the  ability,  knowledge,  and  energy  of  the  man  who 
is  trying  to  grow  them.  This  fact  w^as  very  clearly 
demonstrated  in  Aroostook  County,  Maine,  in  the 
season  of  1907.  Aroostook  County  is  perhaps  the 
richest  agricultural  county  in  the  United  States, 
and  the  potato  is  the  money  crop.  Upward  of 
eleven  million  bushels  of  potatoes  were  shipped 
from  the  crop  in  190G,  besides  all  that  went  into 
starch.  The  shipments  from  the  crop  of  1907  were 
less  than  half  that  of  the  preceding  year.  And  yet 
the  good  farmers  had  as  large,  and  in  some  in- 
stances larger,  crops  than  in  1906.  The  season  of 
1906  was  favorable  for  a  large  crop,  and  everybody 
that  planted  potatoes  succeeded  in  growing  and 
harvesting  a  good  crop.  The  season  of  1907  was 
unfavorable,  and  only  the  good  farmers  had  good 
crops.  The  men  that  thoroughly  prepared  the 
seed  bed  on  well  selected  soil,  planted  only  wdiat 
they  could  properly  care  for,  who  used  fertilizer 
liberally,  cultivated  all  the  season,  and  who 
sprayed  early  and  often  against  insect  and  fungous 
enemies,  and  harvested  as  soon  as  the  crop  w^as 
ready,  not  only  had  a  large  yield  per  acre,  but 
because  of  the  high  price  of  potatoes  after  the 
poorly  grown  early  ones  were  marketed,  brought  it 
about  that  with  many  Aroostook  farmers  the  sea- 
son of  1907  was  the  best  for  years.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  farmer  that  planted  illy  adapted  and 
slovenly  prepared  land,  of  larger  acreage  than  he 
could  well  care  for,  who  neglected  to  spray  because 


THE  POTATO  85 

the  weather  was  not  good  for  spray  to  adhere,  who 
had  so  many  acres  he  could  not  get  them  harvested 
before  the  unusually  early  freezing  of  the  ground 
(over  11,000  acres  of  potatoes  were  frozen  in 
Aroostook  County  in  1907),  found  the  year  a 
disastrous  one.  In  many  instances  the  crop  har- 
vested was  not  sufficient  to  pay  the  fertilizer  bills. 

"By  practising  the  methods  of  the  good  farmers 
of  Aroostook  County,  many  men  in  other  parts  of 
Maine  are  successful  with  potatoes  as  a  money 
crop.  There  is  no  reason  why  men  in  other  states 
may  not  grow  the  potato  at  fully  as  good  a  margin 
of  profit  as  the  farmer  in  Maine. 

"At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Massachusetts 
State  Board  of  Agriculture  in  1901  the  writer 
(Doctor  Woods),  in  answer  to  a  question,  said  in 
substance:  'If  a  Massachusetts  farmer  plants  a 
few  potatoes,  there  is  not  one  man  in  twenty  but 
will  allow  something  else  to  crowd  in  and  cause 
him  to  neglect  his  potatoes.  The  one  great  reason 
they  grow  better  potatoes  in  Aroostook  County 
than  elsewhere  in  Maine  is  that  it  is  the  farmer's 
business  to  grow  potatoes.  He  does  not  allow  his 
stock  or  other  farm  duties  to  lead  to  the  neglect  of 
his  potato  crop.  He  makes  it  his  first  duty  to  take 
care  of  his  field  of  potatoes,  and  the  field  will  have 
from  twenty  to  fifty  or  more  acres  in  it.  One  man 
and  a  pair  of  horses  work  on  twenty  acres  from 
spring  until  the  fall,  and  the  one  man  and  pair  of 
horses  will  care  for  the  twenty  acres,  and  he  will 
not  be  taken  off  to  do  anything  else.  This  is  one  of 
the  reasons  they  grow  potatoes  better  —  because 
they  are  growing  them  for  business.  They  are  not 
thinking  of  the  dairy  cow  or  the  breed  of  sheep;  I 
wish  they  were,  but  they  are  not.  They  are  think- 
ing about  growing  potatoes.     When  I  used  to  live 


86  THE  POTATO 

in  Connecticut,  up  and  down  the  Connecticut 
valley  were  men  that  ate,  drank,  and  slept  tobacco. 
And  so  there  are  men  that  eat,  drink,  and  sleep 
potatoes  down  in  Aroostook  County,  Maine. ' 

"The  potato  is  so  generally  and  extensively 
grown,  we  are  so  familiar  with  its  qualties  and  the 
various  methods  of  culture,  that  most  farmers  are 
very  positive  as  to  the  best  methods  of  growing 
this  crop.  During  the  past  twenty -five  years 
hundreds  of  experiments  have  been  made  at  experi- 
ment stations  and  by  practical  growers,  and  the 
results  from  experiments  in  propagation  and  cul- 
ture are  so  conflicting  that  the  careful  student  will 
be  very  slow  in  drawing  conclusions.  While  he 
will  be  convinced  that  there  are  ideal  ways  of  treat- 
ment under  certain  conditions,  he  will  be  equally 
convinced  that  under  different  conditions  very 
different  practice  will  be  necessary  to  insure  the 
best  crop.  In  potato  growing,  as  with  most  farm 
operations,  the  soil  and  atmosphere  are  such  deter- 
mining factors  that  there  is  no  best  way.  Each 
farmer  who  would  grow  potatoes  to  the  best  advan- 
tage must  be  suflSciently  intelligent  to  under- 
stand the  conditions  of  the  soil  on  his  own  farm. 
The  methods  of  preparation  of  soil,  of  planting, 
cultivating  and  fertilizing  the  crop  depend  largely 
on  the  character  and  condition  of  the  soil  and  the 
season. 

"The  successful  growing  of  the  potato  crop 
demands  careful  and  conscientious  work  from  start 
to  finish.  There  are  many  details  which,  if 
neglected,  mean  partial  failure,  and  which  must  be 
complied  with  in  order  to  insure  the  fullest  success. 
It  is  not  practicable  in  a  short  paper  to  hint  at 
more  than  a  very  few  factors  which  enter  into 
successful  potato  growing.     Among  the  most  im- 


THE  POTATO  87 

portant  are  the  selection,  the  preparation  of  the 
soil,  including  application  of  fertilizer;  the  seed  and 
the  care  of  the  crop  during  the  growing  season. 

"A  soil  to  grow  potatoes  well  must  be  in  an 
excellent  state  of  tilth,  sufficiently  mellow  to  make 
a  good  seed  bed  and  place  for  the  tubers  to  develop. 
Abundant  plant  food  must  be  supplied,  and  the 
land  must  be  so  situated  that  it  will  not  suffer  from 
excessive  rain  and  will  be  well  adapted  to  stand 
drought.  If  not  naturally  well  drained,  it  must  be 
under-drained.  If  it  is  not  of  good  water-holding 
capacity,  this  must  be  secured  by  increasing  the 
humus  by  green  manuring  or  the  use  of  liberal 
quantities  of  stable  manure. 

"There  is  no  farm  crop  that  is  more  easily, 
speedily  and  greatly  affected  by  the  supply  of 
moisture  than  is  the  potato.  It  has  been  found  by 
experiment  that  it  takes  about  425  tons  of  water  to 
grow  a  ton  of  drj^  matter  of  potatoes.  A  crop  of 
200  bushes  per  acre  would  therefore  require  approx- 
imately 650  tons  of  water,  equivalent  to  a  rainfall 
of  nearly  six  inches.  Because  of  its  need  for  large 
water  supply,  and  its  remarkable  susceptibility  to 
climatic  conditions,  it  follows  that  the  average 
potato  yield  is  affected  more  by  water  supply  than 
by  lack  of  plant  food.  The  selection  of  soil  and 
methods  of  culture  must  be  with  this  fact  in  view, 
if  success  is  to  be  had.  The  liberal  applications  of 
fertilizers  or  the  presence  of  large  amounts  of 
readily  available  plant  food  will  prove  of  but  little 
value  if  the  moisture  supply  is  deficient.  It  is  also 
true  that  too  much  water  will  check  the  growth  as 
quickly  and  effectually  as  too  little. 

"Too  much  attention  to  the  fitting  of  the  soil 
for  the  crop  can  hardly  be  given,  for  no  amount  of 
after  tillage  can  overcome  neglect  in  preparation. 


88  THE  POTATO 

Deep  and  thorough  plowing  and  harrowing,  so  as 
to  make  a  perfect  seed  bed,  not  only  establishes  an 
earth  mulch  so  as  to  prevent  the  loss  of  moisture  of 
the  spring  rains,  but  it  so  fines  the  soil  that  the 
plant  food  contained  in  it  becomes  accessible  to  the 
growing  plant.  The  conservation  of  moisture  by 
frequent  tillage  is  not  understood  or  practised  as 
it  should  be.  The  old  notion  that  potatoes  should 
be  hilled  and  that  tillage  should  cease  as  soon  as  the 
potato  is  in  bloom,  is  wrong  for  most  situations. 
Hilling  is  frequently  practised  so  as  to  keep  the 
tubers  from  becoming  exposed  to  the  sun;  that  is 
not  necessary  if  the  soil  is  properly  prepared. 
On  hard,  compact  soil  the  potato  will,  because  of 
less  resistance  of  the  soil,  push  out  of  the  ground. 
This  will  not  happen  in  deeply  worked  land. 

"  The  proper  preparation  of  a  soil  for  the  potato 
crop  is  a  matter  of  years  and  not  a  single  season. 
A  soil,  in  order  to  do  the  best  must  be  in  excellent 
state  of  tilth  and  a  high  state  of  fertility.  Such 
conditions  can  only  be  obtained  by  careful  fore- 
thought and  planning.  Frequently  soil  is  not 
plowed  deeply  enough.  It  is  very  common  for 
people  to  speak  of  plowing  seven,  eight,  or  even 
nine  inches,  but  most  men  would  be  surprised  if 
they  were  to  apply  a  rule  to  see  how  much  short  of 
this  depth  the  plow  actually  goes  below  the  actual 
level  of  the  field.  Many  men  who  think  they  are 
plowing  seven  or  eight  inches  deep  are  only  plow- 
ing five  inches.  If  this  shallow  plowing  has  been 
practised  it  is  bad  management  to  suddenly  deepen 
the  plowing,  as  this  brings  too  much  of  the  sub- 
soil to  the  surface  in  a  single  plowing. 

"  Good  potato  land  may  be  handled  in  a  three  or 
four  year  rotation  —  potatoes,  grain,  grass  one  or 
two  years,  and  then  potatoes  again,  in  some  such 


THE  POTATO  89 

way  as  the  following:  Land  which  is  used  for 
potatoes  should,  immediately  after  harvesting  of 
the  crop,  be  treated  to  a  liberal  application  of  farm 
manure,  if  it  can  be  obtained,  and  plowed  with  lap 
furrow.  The  plow  can  well  run  an  inch  deeper 
tlian  it  did  the  preceding  year  when  the  land  was 
prepared  for  potatoes.  In  the  spring  the  soil  will 
have  crumbled  by  the  frosts,  and  should  then  be 
thoroughly  worked  by  frequent  harrowings  with 
some  such  tool  as  a  disk  or  spading  harrow.  It 
should  then  be  smoothed  with  an  Acme  harrow,  or 
some  other  tool,  and  seeded  to  grain.  If  it  is 
designed  to  grow  only  a  single  crop  of  grass,  it  is 
best  at  the  time  of  seeding  to  sow  clover  with  the 
grain.  If,  however,  it  is  designed  to  remove  two 
crops  of  grass,  it  can  be  seeded  with  a  mixture  of 
clover  and  timothy.  The  grain  crop  will  be  har- 
vested the  first  year;  the  second  season  the  crop 
will  be  chiefly  timothy;  the  third  it  will  be  timothy 
and  clover,  and  at  the  end  of  the  two  or  three  years, 
whichever  plan  is  followed,  there  will  be  in  the  field 
in  the  fall  a  good  stand  of  second  growth  clover. 
This  should  not  be  cut  or  fed,  ])ut  should  be  plowed 
under,  and  this  is  all  the  more  important  if  the 
piece  has  not  been  treated  with  farm  manure. 
This  fall  plowing  should  be  with  lap  furrow  and 
the  following  spring  it  should  be  thoroughly  worked 
with  the  disk  and  smoothing  harrows  in  order  to 
get  ready  for  planting. 

"It  may  in  many  situations  be  desirable  to  fol- 
low the  grass  crop  with  corn,  and  then  follow  with 
potatoes.  The  same  thorough  preparation  will  be 
of  advantage  to  the  corn  crop.  The  land  for  the 
corn  should  be  liberally  fertilized.  Farm  manure 
will  be  again  used  in  this  part  in  the  rotation  to 
advantage.     The  corn  must  be  overfed  in  every 


90  THE  POTATO 

way  so  that  the  land  will  be  in  a  higher  state  of 
fertility  at  the  end  than  at  the  beginning  of  the 
season.  If  com  enters  into  the  rotation,  fall 
plowing  should  be  again  practised,  and  the  follow- 
ing spring  the  land  should  be  thoroughly  worked. 
The  best  possible  seed  bed  should  be  prepared,  so 
that  the  soil  will  be  light  and  thoroughly  pulver- 
ized to  a  depth  of  jBve  or  even  six  inches.  In  a  soil 
thus  prepared  the  planter  will  run  easily. " 

In  the  senior  author's  trip  to  Europe  in  1910  he 
found  all  of  the  best  growers  in  Great  Britain  and 
Germany  using  nothing  but  whole  seed.  He  did 
not  visit  a  grower  abroad  who  used  cut  seed.  He 
secured  a  shipment  of  a  ton  of  very  select  seed 
the  from  Earl  of  Rosebery's  Dalmeny  Farms,  and 
George  Sinclair,  the  farm  manager,  advised  plant- 
ing them  whole,  even  though  they  cost  $200  a  ton 
laid  down  at  Carbondale,  Col. 

In  cutting  seed,  especially  where  soils  are  apt  to 
be  infected  with  fungous  disease,  the  *' armor"  of 
the  potato  is  broken  in  cutting  and  the  tender  tis- 
sue is  exposed. 

"Farmers'  Bulletin  No.  92"  of  the  United  States 
Department  of  Agriculture  contains  the  following: 

"As  a  recent  bulletin  of  the  New  York  Cornell 
Experiment  Station  shows,  the  average  yield  of 
potatoes  in  the  United  States  is  far  below  what  it 
should  be.  This  bulletin  states  that  'the  average 
yield  of  potatoes  throughout  New  York  is  not 
more  than  one  half  what  is  should  be  and  what  it 
would  be  were  better  methods  practised.'  This 
low  yield  is  not  due,  as  a  rule,  to  poverty  of  tlie  soil, 
because  'all  soils  of  ordinary  fertility  contain 
sufficient  potential  plant  food  to  produce  abundant 


THE  POTATO  91 

crops,  *  and  a  part  of  this  potential  plant  food  can 
))e  made  available  for  the  use  of  plants  by  tillage, 
and  drainage,  if  necessary.  The  experiments  of 
the  Cornell  station,  which  have  now  covered  four 
seasons,  were  planned  with  a  view  to  learning 
what  superior  tillage  and  care  would  do  in  the 
way  of  unlocking  the  hoarded  fertility  of  the  soil 
and  increasing  the  yield  of  the  crops. 

"The  soil  on  which  the  potatoes  were  grown  has 
been  continuously  under  crop  without  fertilizers 
since  the  winter  of  1893—94,  except  that  cover  crops 
of  rye,  crimson  clover,  or  wheat,  to  be  turned  under 
in  the  spring,  have  as  a  rule  been  grown.  But  the 
growth  of  these  has  necessarily  been  so  small  and 
the  cropping  so  intensive  that  the  soil  is  beginning 
to  show  a  deficiency  of  humus,  indicated  by  its 
tendency  to  become  hard  and  compact  under  beat- 
ing rains;  for  'in  order  to  keep  a  soil  permanently 
in  good  physical  condition,  it  is  absolutely  neces- 
sary that  organic  matter  be  returned  in  some  wa^', 
either  by  green  manuring  or  the  use  of  barn  ma- 
nures.' 

"Notwithstanding  this  fact,  the  yields  in  the 
Cornell  experiments  have  been  much  above  the 
average  each  year.  This  was  as  true  of  1898  as  of 
previous  years,  in  spite  of  the  additional  fact  that 
the  latter  season  was  one  of  severe  drought  and  the 
soil  used  in  the  experiments  '  is  gravelly  and  porous 
and  especially  subject  to  injurious  effects  from 
drought. ' 

"It  is  probable  that  frequent  and  deep  plowing 
has  done  much  to  bring  and  keep  the  land  pro- 
ductive. So  far  as  tlie  plowing  is  concerned  all 
plats  have  received  the  same  treatment .  The  land 
has  been  turned  from  two  to  three  times  each 
year,  and  the  pulverizing  which  has  resulted  there- 


92  THE  POTATO 

from  lias  liberated  sufficient  plant  food  to  mature 
large  crops.  In  addition  to  the  plowing  the  land 
has  been  frequently  harrowed  and  cultivated  and 
the  intensive  culture  which  has  been  given  has 
liberated  all  the  plant  food  that  could  be  used  by 
the  growing  crops  with  the  amount  of  moisture 
that  was  present. 

"A  fact  clearly  brought  out  by  these  experi- 
ments is  that  'success  with  potatoes  depends 
largely  upon  the  preparation  given  the  soil  before 
the  potatoes  are  planted.  Plowing  should  be  deep, 
and  at  the  time  of  planting  the  soil  should  be 
mellow  and  loose. ' 

"Only  first-class  marketable  potatoes  should  be 
used  for  seed.  These  should  be  cut  into  pieces 
averaging  two  strong  eyes.  'Seed  should  not  be 
cut  for  any  considerable  period  before  planting. 
If  it  becomes  necessary  to  delay  planting  for  some 
considerable  time  after  potatoes  are  cut,  the  cut 
pieces  should  be  dusted  with  plaster  and  spread 
out  in  a  moderately  moist,  cool  place. ' 

"Early  planting  has  usuallj^  given  best  results, 
but  this  necessitates  careful  spraying  with  Bor- 
deaux mixture  and  P'aris  green  to  protect  the 
plants  from  diseases  and  insects.  Early  and  deep 
planting  and  frequent  and  level  tillage  are  espe- 
cially important  in  soils  like  that  used  in  these 
experiments,  which  are  likely  to  be  seriously 
affected  by  drought. 

"The  methods  of  planting  and  cultivation  used 
at  the  Cornell  station  in  1898  were  as  follows: 
'The  pieces  were  dropped  in  the  furrows  directly 
after  the  furrows  had  been  opened,  one  piece  being 
put  in  a  place  and  at  distances  fourteen  inches  apart 
in  the  row.  A  furrow  was  opened  (with  a  shovel 
plow)  in  the  middle  of  the  space  left  when  the  first 


THE  POTATO  93 

furrows  were  opened.  Tliis  served  to  cover  the 
potatoes,  the  earth  being  ridged  up  directly  over 
the  potato  row.  Tlie  planting  was  done  on  May 
10th.  The  soil  was  then  left  undisturbed  until 
May  28th.  The  ridges  which  w^ere  left  over  the 
seed  potatoes  covered  them  to  a  depth  of  about 
eight  inches.  By  May  2Sth  the  weed  seeds  whicli 
were  in  the  surface  soil  had  germinated  and  tlie 
whole  surface  was  covered  with  tiny  w^eeds.  A 
spike-tooth  harrow  was  fitted  Avith  a  piece  of  2  x 
4  scantling  placed  diagonally  across  underneath 
the  frame  and  held  in  place  by  the  harrow  teeth. 
The  harrow^  thus  rigged  was  used  upon  the  potato 
plats,  being  first  run  lengthwise  of  the  rows  and 
tlien  crosswise.  The  weight  of  the  driver  ii])on 
the  harrow  was  necessary  in  order  to  make  it  do 
the  leveling  as  required.  The  benefit  derived 
from  this  treatment  was  very  marked.  All  weeds 
were  destroyed,  the  surface  crust  was  broken,  all 
clods  and  stones  were  removed  from  above  the  row 
and  deposited  in  the  centre  of  the  space  between 
rows,  the  surface  was  leveled,  and  in  every  way 
the  conditions  were  made  favorable  for  the  rai)id 
growth  of  the  potatoes,  and  they  appeared  above 
ground  in  three  or  four  days. 

"In  genend  it  may  be  said  that  'on  soils  which 
are  not  well  drained,  either  naturally  or  artificially, 
and  on  clay  or  clay  loam  soils,  potatoes  may  be 
planted  somewhat  shallow  and  slight  hilling  may 
be  practised  with  benefit. ' 

"If  planting  is  done  veiy  early  in  the  spring  the 
ridges  may  be  permitted  to  remain  for  ten  days  to 
two  weeks  before  harrowing  down.  If  planting  is 
d(me  somewhat  late  the  ridg(^s  should  be  harrowed 
within  one  week  after  planting.  In  the  case  of  the 
early  planting  there  is  usually  enough  moisture 


94  THE  POTATO 

present  so  that  the  ridging  may  temporarily  prove 
a  benefit  by  enabling  the  soil  to  become  warm.  In 
the  case  of  late  planting  all  the  moisture  should  be 
conserved,  and  this  is  best  done  by  leveling  the 
ridges. 

*' Harrowing  the  soil  before  the  plants  appear 
above  ground,  followed  by  from  six  to  seven  culti- 
vations during  the  season,  is  recommended." 

Thoroughness  and  care  are  qualities  that  must 
be  given  attention  in  seed-bed  preparation  and 
seeding,  for  with  these  operations  well  done  the 
crop  is  well  on  its  way  toward  success. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

CULTIVATION 

THE  objects  sought  in  cultivating  the  potato 
are:  First,  keeping  tlie  soil  in  the  seed  bed 
loose  and  retaining  moisture  for  the  crop, 
and,  second,  keeping  down  the  growth  of  weeds, 
which,  if  allowed  to  grow,  not  only  rob  the  potato 
plant  of  moisture  but  also  of  available  fertility. 

Moisture  is  taken  from  the  ground  into  the  air 
by  capillary  action.  By  cultivation  the  surface 
of  the  soil  is  broken  and  the  evaporation  checked. 

Disease  germs  find  it  difficult  to  live  and  de- 
velop in  soil  that  is  exposed  to  the  sun  and  air, 
providing  there  is  thorough  aeration  and  conse- 
quently plenty  of  oxygen. 

It  is  not  possible  to  farm  by  definite  rules. 
Conditions  change  daily,  sometimes  hourly,  so 
that  a  farmer  must  know  what  result  he  desires 
to  obtain  and  use  judgment  in  the  time  and  fre- 
quency of  such  operations  as  cultivation  and  ir- 
rigation, and  be  governed  by  circumstances. 

In  an  irrigation  district,  if  ground  is  dry  before 
planting,  it  should  be  irrigated  well,  so  as  to  make 
the  soil  and  subsoil  a  reservoir  of  moisture  to  be 
drawn  on  by  the  starting  and  growing  plant.  Some 
growers  maintain  that  potatoes  should  not  be 
watered  after  this  "before  planting"  irrigation  until 
the  tubers  are  well  set;  that  the  moisture  must  be 
conserved  by  cultivation.  Conditions  may  arise, 
however,  such  as  a  long  dry  spell  with  winds  that 

96 


96  THE  POTATO 

draw  the  moisture  from  the  soil,  that  would  make 
irrigation  advisable  sooner. 

In  the  irrigated  West  the  crop  should  be  culti- 
vated deeply,  soon  after  planting  making  a  loose, 
deep  seed  bed.  Cultivator  shovels  fourteen  working 
inches  long  and  about  four  inches  wide,  two  on 
each  side  of  the  row,  are  valuable  for  this  work. 
If  this  deep  cultivation  just  after  planting  turns 
up  the  soil  rough,  a  harrow  may  follow  to  fine  the 
surface  in  order  to  hold  moisture.  The  second 
cultivation  can  come  when  the  plants  begin  to 
show.  The  number  of  cultivations  depends  on  the 
condition  of  the  soil,  weeds,  and  number  of  irri- 
gations or  rains.  Cultivation  after  the  tubers 
are  set  should  not  be  so  deep  nor  so  near  the  hills, 
because  a  potato  torn  off  while  in  the  forming 
stage  is  lost.  Tearing  off  feeder  roots  or  rootlets 
at  this  stage  also  reduces  yields. 

Ditches  between  the  rows  for  irrigation  are  made 
with  a  double  shovel  plow  attachment  fastened  to 
one  beam  and  a  two-horse  cultivator.  The  best 
potatoes  and  the  heaviest  yields  have  been  pro- 
duced where  deep  ditching  and  heavj^  ridging  have 
been  practised.  Ridges  must  contain  plenty  of 
dirt  to  protect  the  tubers  from  the  sun  and  to  pre- 
vent greening,  but  growing  in  fairly  loose,  well- 
aired  soil  into  which  the  moisture  comes  up  from 
the  bottom  has  proved  best.  The  bulk  of  the 
roots  of  the  plant  go  deeper,  but  the  tubers  have 
the  benefit  of  forming  and  developing  in  a  favor- 
able environment. 

Flat  cultivation,  stirring  the  surface  only,  so 
as  not  to  destroy  the  surface  roots,  is  advocated 
in  potato  growing  in  some  sections  of  the  rain  belt. 
There,  all  moisture  is  applied  evenly  over  the  sur- 
face in  the  form  of  rain,  and  it  is  necessary  that 


IVo  views  of  Iron  A^c  ( "iilli\  ;iloi-  ;il  work 


-T3 


<v 


o 
■=c 

o 


o 

V2 


^3 


THE  POTATO  97 

moisture  be  carefully  conserved  for  fear  of  drought 
at  some  time  during  the  growing  season.  The 
available  plant  food  is  also  more  largely  in  the 
first  few  inches  of  surface  soil  than  in  the  more 
loose  desert  soils  that  have  had  the  action  of  the 
elements  for  ages  without  the  packing  and  leaching 
heavy  rainfall. 

It  is  important  to  run  the  irrigation  water  low 
in  the  furrow  to  keej)  from  solidifying  the  soil  and 
soaking  the  tubers.  The  root  system  seems  to  go 
deeper  and  adapt  itself  to  the  conditions  as  long  as 
the  irrigation  water  is  supplied  evenly  and  the  soil 
is  rich.  Each  of  these  conditions  is  under  control 
where  the  water  is  abundant  and  the  soil  fertile. 

Irrigation  is  followed  by  cultivation,  and  by 
irrigation  again  as  soon  as  necessary.  This  is 
determined  by  examination  of  the  soil  and  the 
color  of  the  leaves  of  the  plants.  If  the  soil  about 
the  roots  is  so  dry  it  will  not  remain  moulded  with 
the  imprint  of  the  hand  when  a  small  handful  is 
compressed,  it  is  too  dry  and  needs  water.  This 
cannot  be  taken  too  literally,  but  some  judgment 
must  be  used  even  in  making  as  simple  a  test  as 
this.  One  novice,  making  this  test,  found  that  the 
mould  he  formed  stood  all  right,  but  on  being 
touched  crumbled  away.  Literally,  as  he  under- 
stood the  rule,  the  test  showed  sufficient  moisture. 
Actually,  the  ground  was  getting  dry  and,  needed 
irrigation. 

When  potatoes  require  water  they  indicaie  it 
by  the  dark  green,  almost  black,  color  of  the  leaves. 
When  watered  too  heavily  they  get  too  light 
green,  almost  yellow.  The  characteristic  healthy 
medium  green  of  a  potato  plant  in  good  condition 
and  doing  well  must  be  seen  to  be  appreciated, 
but  these  things  are  easily  learned. 


98  THE  POTATO 

Good  potatoes  are  grown  with  one  to  five  ir- 
rigations, the  last  one  not  much  later  than  August 
20th,  to  give  forty  to  sixty  days  for  finishing  growth 
and  ripening.  Some  of  the  best  growers  irrigate 
alternate  rows  at  each  irrigation,  taking  two 
waterings  to  go  over  the  entire  field. 

There  is  good  reason  why  irrigation  conditions 
are  ideal  for  the  production  of  potatoes.  The 
value  of  this  crop,  as  of  many  others,  depends  on  a 
right  amount  of  moisture  at  the  right  time,  the 
demand  for  moisture  being  heavy  while  the  tubers 
are  forming  and  developing.  In  Wisconsin  it  is 
assumed  that  the  eighteen  inches  of  water  generally 
counted  on  during  the  growing  season  is  sufficient 
to  mature  a  maximum  crop.  In  ten  of  the  past 
twenty-one  years  the  amount  of  rainfall  during 
the  growing  season  has  been  fourteen  iiiches  or 
less.  Prof.  F.  H.  King,  the  soil  expert,  found  at 
the  Wisconsin  Experiment  Station  that  the  ad- 
dition of  two  acre  inches  of  water  by  irrigation 
increased  the  yield  of  marketable  potatoes  100 
bushels  per  acre.  In  the  Twin  Falls  country 
in  Idaho  and  some  other  places  in  the  Rocky 
Mountain  country  the  moisture  supply  is  under 
absolute  control,  making,  with  an  ideal  soil,  a 
sufficient  and  legitimate  reason  for  the  production 
of  the  most  perfect  potatoes. 

It  requires  from  270  to  500  pounds  of  water  to 
make  one  pound  of  dry  matter  in  the  vine  and 
tuber  of  the  potato  plant. 

The  best  growers  favor  several  rather  fight  irri- 
gations to  fewer  heavier  applications. 

In  "Bulletin  132"  of  the  Maryland  Agricultural 
College  is  given  the  result  of  an  experiment  to  ascer- 
tain whether  deep  or  shallow  cultivation  would  pro- 
duce the  best  potato  crop.     The  summary  follows : 


THE  POTATO  99 

Surface  Medium  Deep  Deep 

Bu.  Bu.  Bu.  Bu.  Bu.  Bu. 

Primes        Culls  Primes      Culls  Primes     Culls 

127.3  30.0  137.9        30.3  141.6        28.2 

And   also  the  average  of  yields  as  affected  by 
frequency  of  cultivation,  disregarding  depth: 

Five  Days  Ten  Days  Fifteen  Days 

Bu.  Bu.  Bu.  Bu.  Bu.  Bu. 

Primes      Culls  Primes      Culls  Primes      Culls 

126.5        27.4  132.4        27.6  147.5        33.2 

In  discussing  it  the  Maryland  people  say :  "  The 
above  jSgures  seem  to  clearly  indicate  that  the 
deep  and  infrequent  cultivation  was  most  profit- 
able, there  being  a  difference  of  more  than  fourteen 
bushels  per  acre  in  favor  of  the  deep  over  the  shal- 
low cultivation,  and  of  twenty-one  bushels  in 
favor  of  infrequent  working.  It  would  seem, 
therefore,  that  the  practice  of  farmers  who  usually 
cultivate  with  such  tools  and  at  such  times  as  will 
keep  the  crop  free  from  weeds  is  about  all  that  is 
necessary  to  produce  a  good  crop  under  the  con- 
ditions prevailing  here.  The  result  may  have 
been  different  if  the  same  experiment  had  been 
conducted  in  the  arid  West.  It  is  only  at  rare 
intervals  that  the  rainfall  in  Maryland  is  so  slight 
that  it  is  practicable  or  necessary  to  work  for  a 
'dust  mulch.'  What  is  really  important  is  to 
destroy  the  weeds  and  stir  the  soil  fairly  deep  to 
aerate,  and  at  the  same  time  dry  it  and  make  it 
loose  and  friable." 

In  an  essav  bv  Dr.  Chas.  D.  Woods  of  Orono, 
Maine,  in  the  fifty  sixth  annual  report  of  the  IVIas- 
sachusetts  State  Board  of  Agriculture  is  the  follow- 


100  THE  POTATO 

ing:  "All  through  the  gi'owing  season  the  field 
should  be  kept  free  from  weeds.  The  exaggerated 
ridge  culture  which  is  so  common  in  Aroostook 
County  could  be  better  replaced  in  Massachusetts 
by  a  less  pronounced  ridge,  or  as  level  culture  as  is 
practicable.  Suitable  potato  land  is  naturally  or 
artificially  so  well  drained  that  it  does  not  suffer 
from  excessive  moisture,  and  with  the  high-ridge 
culture  there  is  danger  even  in  a  moderately  dry 
season  of  the  crop  suffering  from  lack  of  water. 
The  frequent  running  of  the  cultivator  not  merely 
keeps  down  the  weeds,  but  it  lets  the  air  into  the 
soil  and  prevents  excessive  loss  of  moisture  from 
evaporation,  and  in  every  way  seems  to  be  bene- 
ficial to  the  crop.  This  should  be  kept  up  until  the 
vines  pretty  well  cover  the  ground.  If  weeds  are 
appearing  in  the  drill,  these  should  be  removed 
by  hand." 

By  the  foregoing  it  will  be  seen  that  much  de- 
pends on  the  individual,  who  must  study  his 
conditions  and  adapt  practice  accordingly. 


CHAPTER  IX 

IRRIGATION 

FUNDAMENTALLY  and  theoretically,  irri- 
gation is  the  simplest  operation  connected 
with  the  growing  of  a  crop  on  an  irri- 
gated farm. 

At  first  thought  it  was  intended  to  preface  this 
chapter  with  a  note  to  the  effect  that  the  ideas 
which  follow  will  pertain  only  to  those  parts  of 
the  earth  where  crops  can  be  grown  only  with  ir- 
rigation. 

The  practice  of  irrigation,  however,  is  simply 
that  of  supplying  a  plant  the  quantity  of  moisture 
required  to  bring  about  its  most  perfect,  normal 
development.  There  are  times  wiien  an  appli- 
cation of  water  to  the  soil  of  what  is  called  the 
"rain  belt"  would  be  of  great  benefit  and  result  in 
profit  to  the  grower. 

The  practice  of  irrigation  is  sure  to  increase  as 
the  productiveness  of  the  acre  must  continually 
be  made  greater. 

It  cannot  be  made  too  plain  that  irrigation  is 
easy  as  long  as  the  operator  keeps  in  mind  the 
moisture  needs  of  the  plant. 

The  following  interesting  article  on  irrigation  is 
from  the  "Irrigator's  Hand  Book,"  which  is  a 
compilation  of  suggestions  on  various  agricul- 
tural subjects  written  in  1909,  primarily  for  the 
settlers  on  the  J.  S.  &  W.  S.  Kuhn  irrigation  proj- 
ects in  southern  Idaho  by  the  authors  of  this  work 

101 


102  THE  POTATO 

in  collaboration  with  other  members  of  the  Agri- 
cultural Department  of  the  Twin  Falls  North 
Side  Land  &  Water  Company,  and  published  by 
H.  L.  Hollister  of  Chicago.  C.  J.  Griffith,  one  of 
the  foremost  agriculturists  in  America,  and  at 
present  Director  of  Agriculture  for  the  company 
mentioned  above,  prepared  the  following: 

"Irrigation  is  the  artificial  application  of  water 
to  land.  It  is  necessary  in  arid  regions  in  order 
that  profitable  crops  may  be  grown;  and  it  is  use- 
ful in  semi-arid  regions  to  increase  their  produc- 
tion. Although  most  useful  in  arid  regions,  it  is 
often  practised  in  localities  of  heavy  rainfall,  for 
instance  in  the  rice-growing  districts  of  the  South, 
where  the  annual  rainfall  is  from  forty  to  sixty 
inches. 

"The  practice  of  irrigation  is  older  than  the 
Pyramids  of  Egypt.  The  valleys  of  the  rivers  Nile 
and  Euphrates  have  an  unbroken  historical  rec- 
ord of  more  than  4,000  years. 

"In  a  great  many  places  in  this  hemisphere 
there  are  ruins  of  irrigation  works  that  antedate 
any  written  history,  and  the  civilization  of  the 
race  that  built  them  is  only  surmised. 

"The  irrigated  area  of  all  the  nations  of  the 
world  does  not  exceed  100,000,000  acres,  or  a  land 
area  of  less  than  twice  the  acreage  of  the  state  of 
Idaho.  Of  this  area  India  has  53,000,000  acres, 
and  in  that  country  may  be  seen  some  of  the  most 
expensive  irrigation  works  in  existence. 

"There  are  only  13,000,000  acres  of  irrigated 
land  in  the  United  States,  and  the  greatest  systems 
yet  developed  are  in  the  Twin  Falls  country. 

"The  preparation  of  land  for  irrigation  consists 
in:     First,  putting  the  land  in  condition  for  farm- 


THE  POTATO  lOP, 

ing;  and,  second,  a  proper  surface  grading  for  the 
even  distribution  of  water. 

"There  is  nothing  that  pertains  to  irrigated 
farming  that  pays  better  than  proper  levehng  or 
grading  of  the  land.  It  is  the  key  to  the  whole 
situation,  and  when  once  done  it  is  done  for  all 
time. 

"It  is  not  always  necessary  to  change  the  gen- 
eral grade  or  lay  of  a  piece  of  land,  but  it  is  ab- 
solutely essential  to  take  off  high  places  and  build 
up  low  ones. 

"There  are  several  implements  with  which  to 
do  leveling  and  grading;  among  these  are  Fresno 
scrapers,  buck  scrapers  and  land  graders  of  dif- 
ferent makes.  Each  one  has  a  special  use,  some 
being  for  heavy  cuts  and  long  hauls,  and  some  best 
for  short  hauls.  The  character  of  the  work  to  be 
done  will  be  the  determining  factor  in  the  imple- 
ment chosen.  After  the  grading  is  done,  in  order 
to  get  surface  smoothness,  a  home-made  leveler 
or  jointer  made  of  plank  should  be  run  over  the 
land  to  take  out  all  small  unevennesses.  This 
leveler  or  jointer  should  be  used  every  time  a 
field  is  plowed.  It  firms  and  fines  the  soil.  On 
some  land  this  leveler  is  the  only  implement 
needed  for  leveling. 

"No  hard  and  fast  rules  can  be  given  for  the 
laying  out  of  the  ditch  system  for  a  new  tract  of 
land,  but  there  are  a  great  many  essential  points 
to  be  considered  in  order  to  have  satisfactory  re- 
sults. It  is  desirable  to  bring  the  water  to  the 
liighest  point  on  the  farm,  so  that  every  part  can 
be  reached.  The  'farm  supi)ly  dilcli'  sliould  be 
as  short  as  it  is  possi})le  to  make  it  in  order  to  les- 
sen seepage,  evajioration  and  mainlonance.  It 
should  ordinarily  be  made  on  a  grade  of  1  foot  (1.2 


104  THE  POTATO 

inches)  to  0.2  feet  (2.4  inches)  fall  per  hundred 
feet,  according  to  the  firmness  of  the  soil  through 
which  it  is  made.  Ditches  that  carry  over  three  or 
four  second  feet  of  water  should  have  less  grade. 
Whenever  the  current  of  the  water  picks  up  and 
carries  sediment,  the  ditch  will  give  trouble,  be- 
cause the  sediment  will  be  dropped  in  places  where 
the  current  is  slower  and  eventually  this  will 
choke  up  the  ditch  and  cause  a  break.  Especially 
in  sandy  soil  should  care  be  used  to  get  an  even 
and  light  grade,  which  should  not  exceed  1.5 
inches  per  hundred  feet.  Where  it  is  necessary  to 
take  a  farm  supply  ditch  down  a  hea\y  grade,  drop 
boxes  should  be  put  in  to  take  care  of  the  excess 
grade.  Farm  supply  ditches  should  be  so 
located,  if  possible,  to  avoid  dikes  and  flumes. 
A  dike  where  absolutely  necessary  should  be  made 
of  stiff  soil,  the  banks  should  be  made  wide  and 
high,  and  the  dirt  for  it  should  not  be  taken  closer 
than  four  feet  from  the  toe  of  the  bank  on  each 
side.  When  water  is  put  through  it  for  the  first 
few  times,  it  should  never  be  allowed  to  run  all 
night,  because  the  soil  thus  thrown  up  is  loose  and 
readily  fills  with  water.  After  a  few  hours'  run, 
the  water  begins  to  seep  through  the  banks,  and 
until  the  dirt  in  the  fills  has  repeatedly  soaked  up 
and  settled  there  is  always  danger  of  it  breaking. 
As  soon  as  the  dikes  are  firm  and  solid,  the  banks 
should  be  seeded  to  some  grass  that  makes  a  good 
sod.  Kentucky  blue  grass  and  Brome  grass 
(Bromus  Inermus)  make  good  sod  for  holding 
ditch  banks.  Sandy  soil  makes  a  very  unsatis- 
factory dike,  as  it  never  hardens  like  a  stiffer  soil. 
Flumes  are  unsatisfactory  unless  well  made.  Gal- 
vanized iron  flumes  give  good  service.  Farm 
supply  ditches  should  have  ample  capacity.     New 


THE  POTATO  105 

ditches  lose  a  great  deal  by  seepage,  and  until  they 
become  silted  up  they  do  not  carry  as  much  water 
as  their  size  would  indicate.  New  land  in  an  arid 
district  takes  more  water  the  first  year  than  it 
ever  requires  thereafter.  For  an  80-acre  tract  of 
new  land  the  supply  ditch  should  be  made  with 
a  slip  scraper  and  it  should  generally  be  at  least 
one  foot  deep  in  the  solid  ground,  to  say  nothing  of 
the  height  of  the  banks  made  by  the  dirt  scraped 
out. 

"Care  should  be  used  to  run  the  distributing 
laterals  on  a  light  grade,  because  water  must  be 
taken  out  of  them  for  the  corrugations  or  checks, 
and  if  they  have  a  heayj^  grade  it  is  a  difficult 
thing  to  do,  because  it  requires  so  many  checks  in 
the  laterals.  These  laterals  can  be  made  wuth  a 
plow  and  a  go-devil,  or  a  regular  ditch  plow.  The 
corrugations  should  be  run  in  the  direction  of  the 
greatest  fall. 

"The  best  method  of  irrigation  to  be  followed 
is  dependent  upon  the  character  of  soil  and  the 
slope  of  the  land.  The  corrugation  system  is 
suitable  for  land  that  takes  up  water  readily  and 
that  has  ten  feet  of  uniform  slope  per  mile  (a 
trifle  more  than  one  inch  per  fifty  feet)  or  more. 
Corrugations  may  be  placed  as  close  together  as 
is  necessary.  Usually  twenty  inches  apart  is  the 
minimum  width  and  three  feet  apart  the  maximum. 
The  furrows  are  made  about  four  inches  deep  and 
should  be  made  immediately  after  seeding  or  be- 
fore the  seed  germinates.  In  old  alfalfa  fields 
the  corrugations  can  be  renewed  when  it  becomes 
desirable  with  an  iron  corrugator  that  has  sharp, 
plow-like  points. 

"Sub-laterals  are  made  parallel  with  the  laterals. 
For   corrugation    or    furrow    irrigation    in    Idaho 


100  THE  POTATO 

a  sufficient  head  of  water  is  taken  from  tlie  lateral 
to  supply  about  twenty  corrugations.  This  is  run 
into  the  sub-laterals,  and  from  these  distributed 
to  the  corrugations.  This  breaks  up  the  head  of 
water  into  small  streams  that  can  be  more  easily 
handled.  A  controlling  device  to  regulate  these 
small  heads  of  water  may  be  made  from  1x4  inch 
stuff  nailed  together,  making  a  box  four  inches 
square  outside  measurements  and  about  three  feet 
long.  This  box  is  placed  between  the  lateral  and 
sub-lateral  low  enough  to  intercept  the  flow  of 
water.  The  sub-lateral  is  generally  a  plow  furrow 
with  the  dirt  thrown  down  hill.  Dirt  dams  are 
placed  in  it  at  proper  intervals  (about  every 
twenty  corrugations)  to  force  the  water  out  to  the 
corrugations. 

*'It  is  sometimes  necessary  to  place  checks  im- 
mediately below  the  diversion  points  in  the  lat- 
eral in  order  to  raise  the  water  level  high  enough  to 
force  the  water  into  the  corrugations.  These 
checks  are  boxes  or  gates  put  in  ditches  or  lat- 
erals through  which  the  water  is  made  to  pass. 
The  height  of  water  maintained  above  the  check 
is  regulated  by  building  up  the  opening  (with 
narrow  strips  beginning  at  the  bottom)  through 
which  the  water  passes.  Canvas  dams  can  also 
be  used  as  checks  when  they  are  properly  made. 
Sacks  filled  w4th  dirt  can  also  be  used  for  diver- 
sions. 

"The  corrugation  or  furrow  system  is  the 
method  best  adapted  for  the  watering  of  all  root 
crops.  Potatoes  show  the  bad  effects  of  even  a 
break  between  the  furrows  and  consequent  flood- 
ing. For  potatoes  the  furrows  are  made  quite 
large,  the  rows  being  ridged  and  furrows  made  be- 
tween the  rows.     Sometimes  the  best  method  for 


THE  POTATO  107 

the  crop  and  the  most  economical  in  the  use  of 
water  is  to  irrigate  only  alternate  furrows  at  each 
irrigation.  Water  should  be  on  the  ground  until 
it  is  sufficiently  wet,  sometimes  from  twelve  to 
twenty-four  hours.  If  the  soil  is  very  mellow  and 
readily  permeable,  then  four  to  eight  hours  is 
generally  sufficient.  The  irrigation  should  con- 
tinue until  the  moisture  'subs'  between  the  fur- 
rows until  it  meets.  Orchards  are  commonly 
irrigated  by  the  furrow  method.  Care  should  be 
taken  to  keep  the  water  away  from  the  trees,  as  it 
is  found  that  they  thrive  better  when  the  water 
does  not  touch  them  but  percolates  into  the  soil 
and  reaches  the  roots.  When  all  the  ground  be- 
tween the  trees  is  moistened  the  roots  spread  uni- 
formly. Grain  and  alfalfa  may  be  irrigated  with 
corrugations  and  in  this  section  it  is  the  most  com- 
mon method.  By  its  use  water  is  evenly  distrib- 
uted over  the  fields,  is  absolutely  under  control 
all  the  time,  and  where  the  land  is  in  proper  shape 
the  work  is  quite  rapid  and  probably  less  expen- 
sive than  any  other  method  except  by  the  border 
system. 

"The  flooding  system  of  irrigation  can  be  used 
for  watering  grain  and  alfalfa.  The  laterals  are 
most  commonly  run  parallel  to  the  slope,  water 
being  taken  out  from  only  one  side  of  the  lateral 
and  extending  to  the  next  one.  Sometimes  on 
nearly  level  land  they  are  run  down  the  steepest 
slope,  the  irrigation  water  being  taken  out  from 
each  side  and  extending  midway  to  the  next  lat- 
eral. Under  this  method  the  distance  between 
laterals  should  not  be  over  200  feet  and  it  is  better 
to  have  them  closer  together,  not  over  100  feet. 
These  laterals  may  be  either  permanent  or  made 
over  each  year,   as  in  the  case  of  grain   crops- 


108  THE  POTATO 

This  method  is  in  general  suitable  for  medium 
slopes,  soils  which  do  not  bake,  grain  pasture  and 
hay  crops,  and  where  lands  are  not  of  great  value, 
such  as  meadow  lands  at  high  altitudes.  One 
man  can  irrigate  from  two  to  five  acres  a  day.  As 
a  rule  the  irrigation  by  this  method  is  more  un- 
even than  with  the  other  system. 

"Some  system  to  care  for  waste  water  is  a  nec- 
essary part  of  an  irrigated  farm.  Especially 
where  the  ranch  is  bordered  by  other  irrigated 
tracts  or  by  public  roads  it  is  essential  to  have  an 
adequate  system  of  waste  ditches  that  will  re- 
ceive and  care  for  whatever  water  is  not  used  by 
the  irrigation.  It  often  happens  that  draws  or 
coulees  are  so  located  that  they  will  carry  away 
the  waste  water  and  in  such  cases  no  further  at- 
tention is  necessary.  The  amount  of  waste  water 
is  so  variable  that  it  is  seldom  satisfactory  for 
any  one  else  to  try  to  use  it  for  irrigation,  and  be- 
cause of  the  fluctuations  in  its  flow  is  not  best  to 
waste  the  water  into  another  farm  ditch. 

**The  term  'duty  of  water'  as  used  in  irrigation 
is  accepted  to  mean  the  acreage  of  land  that  a 
certain  amount  of  water  should  sufliciently  ir- 
rigate. The  standard  measurement  for  running 
water  is  in  cubic  feet  per  second  —  that  is,  a  run- 
ning stream  is  measured  by  the  number  of  cubic 
feet  which  pass  a  given  point  per  second.  In 
Idaho  a  miner's  inch  of  water  is  one  fiftieth  of  a 
cubic  foot  per  second.  The  amounts  used  in  ir- 
rigation are  commonly  spoken  of  in  acre  feet  or 
acre  inches.  This  is  the  amount  covering  an 
acre  of  land  one  foot  deep  or  one  inch  deep  as  the 
case  may  be. 

"The  amount  of  water  needed  to  grow  and  ma- 
ture a  crop  is  dependent  on  a  great  variety  of 


THE  POTATO  109 

conditions,  some  of  which  fluctuate  even  on  a 
given  farm  from  year  to  year.  The  composition 
of  the  soils,  the  subsoil,  the  annual  rainfall,  the 
humidity  of  the  air,  temperature,  the  time  of 
seeding  and  many  other  things  have  appreciable 
effects  upon  the  amount  of  water  necessary  for  a 
given  crop  for  maximum  results.  It  is  a  question 
of  knowing  how  little  instead  of  how  much  to  use. 
The  soil  can  retain  only  a  certain  amount,  and 
whatever  is  applied  more  than  this  is  lost  by  perco- 
lation into  the  subsoil  and  beyond  the  food  gather- 
ing area  of  the  roots  of  plants.  An  appreciably 
large  per  cent,  of  irrigation  water  is  lost  in  this  way. 
New  land  will  take  more  w^ater  the  first  year  than 
thereafter,  and  for  the  third  year  less  is  required 
than  for  the  second.  The  time  to  apply  water  is 
when  the  crop  needs  it  and  not  before.  This  is 
determined  in  alfalfa  by  a  darkening  in  the  green 
of  the  leaves.  The  moisture  content  of  the  soil 
should  be  closely  watched,  and  by  the  exercise  of  a 
little  good  judgment  no  serious  mistake  in  applj-- 
ing  water  need  be  made.  Too  little  as  w^ell  as  too 
much  moisture  in  soils  injures  plants.  The 
amount  of  water  to  be  put  on  at  one  application  is 
dependent  on  the  crop  and  the  soil,  but  generally 
about  five  acre  inches  is  sufficient  for  an  irrigation. 
On  sandy  loam,  and  making  allowances  for  some 
loss  as  waste  and  evaporation,  this  amount  will 
wet  the  soil  about  as  deep  as  plant  roots  go. 

"In  localities  where  water  for  irrigation  is  scarce, 
fall  or  winter  irrigation  is  often  practised.  It 
has  a  number  of  things  to  commend  it  besides  the 
principal  fact  that  if  the  water  is  not  stored  in  the 
land  it  is  lost.  By  using  the  water  in  this  way, 
where  there  is  a  scarcity,  additional  land  can  be 
farmed   and   made  to  yield   remunerative   crops. 


110  THE  POTATO 

Enough  moisture  can  often  be  stored  in  the  soil 
during  the  fall  or  winter  to  grow  a  crop  of  grain  or 
potatoes.  Cultivation  usually  plays  quite  a  prom- 
inent part  in  raising  such  crops.  It  too  often 
happens  that  where  water  is  plentiful  irrigation  is 
substituted  for  cultivation.  Where  water  is 
scarce  it  is  an  advantage  to  get  the  seed  in  the 
ground  just  as  early  in  the  spring  as  is  possible  so 
that  the  crop  may  be  shading  the  ground  before 
warm  weather  comes  on.  This  prevents  evapora- 
tion." 


CHAPTER  X 

HARVESTING 

THE  bulk  of  the  potato  crop  of  the  world  is 
grown  m  what  may  be  called  "short  season" 
territory,  and  by  that  is  meant  that  there 
is  danger  to  the  crop  from  frost  at  both  ends  of 
the  growing  period. 

Because  of  this  the  main  harvesting  care  is 
"weather."  The  potatoes  must  be  out  of  the 
ground  and  cared  for  before  the  heavy  freezes. 

Potatoes  that  are  not  fuUv  matured  at  the  time 
in  the  fall  of  the  year  when  frost  threatens  must 
be  dug  green. 

Practically  all  large  acreages  of  potatoes  are  now 
dug  or  "lifted"  by  machinery.  There  are  several 
excellent  horsepower  potato  diggers.  These 
have  a  projecting  "snout"  or  flat  shovel  which 
runs  under  the  row,  lifting  the  entire  mass  of  dirt 
which  contains  the  tubers  to  an  apron  made  of 
iron  rods.  The  dirt  falls  through  these  iron  rods 
and  the  potatoes  are  passed  along  —  to  be  finally 
dropped  on  the  top  of  the  ground. 

The  process  of  harvesting  potatoes  has  passed 
through  the  same  evolution  as  other  farm  opera- 
tions. At  first  the  tubers  were  dug  by  hand  with 
a  hoe  or  shovel,  or  "plowed  out"  with  an  ordinary 
moldboard  walking  plow.  Then  a  pronged  fork 
took  the  place  of  the  hoe  and  shovel,  and  a  flat 
nosed  plow  with  wide  double  moldboard  made 
of  iron  rods  was  used.     Wilh  this  sort  of  digger 

111 


112  THE  POTATO 

the  dirt  fell  through  and  the  potatoes  were  car- 
ried over. 

To  make  a  field  trial  of  a  machine  in  the  par- 
ticular character  of  soil  it  is  to  be  used  in  is  a  safe 
way  to  select  a  digger. 

Green,  heavy  tops  clog  a  digger.  Some  pull  the 
tops  and  haul  them  off  the  field  in  order  to  make 
digging  easier.  A  simpler  way  to  remedy  this  dif- 
ficulty is  to  run  a  harrow  over  the  field — in  the 
same  direction  that  the  digger  will  run.  This 
straightens  out  the  tops  and  they  make  less 
trouble.  A  long  spike  tooth  harrow,  with  teeth 
slanted  back,  should  be  used. 

An  essential  in  digging  potatoes  is  to  let  the 
tubers  lie  on  the  top  of  the  ground  for  two  or  six 
hours  to  dry  out  any  dirt  clinging  to  them  and 
toughen  the  skin.  In  this  way  the  potato  is  less 
liable  to  bruise  in  the  after  handling  and  much 
less  dirt  is  carried  from  the  field. 

Some  potato  digging  machinery  manufacturers 
have  been  trying  to  perfect  a  device  for  sacking  as 
well  as  digging  potatoes.  It  would  seem  that  the 
"drying  out"  in  the  sun,  previously  mentioned,  is 
of  such  importance  as  to  make  this  attachment 
impractical. 

In  the  districts  in  the  western  part  of  the 
United  States  potatoes  are  picked  by  hand  into 
pails  or  baskets  and  deposited  in  *'half  sacks.'* 
Regular  potato  sacks  are  half  filled  and  pickers  are 
paid  a  stated  price  for  filling  into  each  one  bushel. 
Half  sacks  are  used  to  make  handling  easier. 
(Filled  and  sewed,  the  sack  holds  about  two  bushels, 
or  120  pounds.)  The  usual  price  is  three  cents 
per  bushel  for  picking. 

These  small  sacks  are  hauled  from  the  fields  to 
the  cellar  and  there  the  potatoes  are  spread  out 


THE  POTATO  113 

in  thin  layers.  These  layers  gradually  become 
thicker  as  the  cellar  is  filled,  but  it  is  best  not 
to  fill  any  one  part  of  the  cellar  too  deep  at  one 
time. 

Sometimes  potatoes  are  run  over  a  sorter  in  the 
field  and  the  marketable  ones  either  taken  direct 
to  the  shipping  point  or  stored  separately  in  the 
cellar.  Potatoes  marketed  from  the  field  weigh  10 
per  cent,  more  than  those  taken  to  the  cellar  and 
rehandled.  If  weather  conditions  are  urgent,  and 
help  scarce,  this  can  often  be  done  to  better  ad- 
vantage in  the  cellar. 

A  machine  digger  will  handle  four  to  six  acres 
a  day. 

Irrigated  districts,  where  there  is  no  rain  during 
the  growing  and  digging  season,  have  a  consider- 
able advantage  in  the  ability  to  turn  out  a  product 
free  from  mud.  This  is  emphasized  by  a  study  of 
the  potato  bulletins  of  the  Eastern  States  and 
Europe,  where  the  grower  is  admonished  to  "lift 
early,"  and  in  dry  weather  if  possible. 

Potatoes  should  always  be  dug  when  the  vines 
die  —  frost  conditions  must  indicate  how  long  be- 
fore that  time.  As  long  as  the  vine  is  green,  the 
tubers  are  growing.  One  experiment  shows  that 
one  third  of  the  merchantable  part  of  a  crop  was 
made  (developed)  in  the  last  thirty  of  the  120-day 
period  from  planting  to  digging. 

Careful  handling  pays  at  every  stage  of  the 
harvesting  process.  A  cut  or  badly  bruised  po- 
tato decays  readily  and  every  tuber  lost  reduces 
the  profits. 

While  the  toughening  described  is  beneficial  — • 
especially  as  regards  bruising  in  handling  —  the 
potato  must  not  be  left  too  long  in  the  sun  or  it 
will  turn  green  and  be  unfit  for  food. 


114  THE  POTATO 

In  gardens,  "grabbling"  is  sometimes  practised, 
especially  in  Germany.  This  is  to  dig  carefully 
into  the  sides  of  a  hill  of  potatoes  and  remove  the 
largest  tubers  for  early  use  or  market.  If  care- 
fully done  this  will  cause  no  injury  to  the  smaller 
tubers. 

An  excellent  description  of  handling  potatoes  in 
the  field  in  the  East  is  given  by  Alva  Agee,  in 
"Bulletin  No.  105"of  the  Pennsylvania  Department 
of  Agriculture.     It  follows: 

"In  great  potato-growing  sections  years  ago  it 
w^as  a  common  practice  to  pour  bulk  potatoes  into 
wagon-beds,  and  to  shovel  them  out  into  baskets 
when  unloading.  This  primitive  method  was 
laborious,  and  did  injury  by  bruising  the  tubers. 
Potato  boxes  have  now  come  into  common  use  in 
many  districts.  They  are  made  of  light  mate- 
rial, preferably  basswood  or  similar  wood.  The 
boards  for  sides  and  bottom  should  be  three 
eighths  inch  in  thickness,  and  the  ends  one  half. 
The  size  of  box  should  be  such  that  it  will  contain 
2,688  cubic  inches,  level  full.  The  legal  bushel 
measure  for  grain  contains  2,150.4  cubic  inches,  and 
in  measuring  roots  or  potatoes  the  rule  is  to  heap 
the  half-bushel  measure  sufficiently  to  add  one 
level  peck  to  the  two  level  half -bushels.  Five 
level  pecks,  or  2,688  cubic  inches,  are  the  equiva- 
lent of  two  rounding  half-bushels  and  of  a  level 
potato  box  rightly  made.  The  following  dimen- 
sions are  the  ones  used  by  a  leading  manufacturer 
of  these  boxes:  Twelve  and  one  half  inches  deep, 
thirteen  and  one  half  inches  wide,  and  sixteen 
inches  long.  This  gives  exactly  2,700  cubic 
inches.  This  size  probably'  is  more  convenient 
than  any  other  that  could  be  devised.     The  length 


THE  POTATO  115 

of  two  boxes  is  near  the  width  of  the  ordinary 
wagon-bed,  leaving  only  room  for  the  hands  when 
putting  them  into  position,  and,  when  empty,  one 
box  can  be  placed  inside  of  two  others,  economizing 
space.  With  high  sideboards  on  the  wagon-bed, 
it  is  convenient  to  tier  up  sixty  bushels  when  draw- 
ing from  the  field  to  the  cellar  or  to  market,  but 
the  extensive  grower  may  prefer  a  long  platform 
that  will  hold  twenty  or  more  boxes  in  a  single 
tier. 

"The  home-made  box  is  usually  less  satis- 
factory. It  is  rarely  made  of  the  best  light  mate- 
rial, and  when  one  takes  into  account  the  number 
of  times  the  boxes  must  be  handled,  he  may  see  the 
advantage  of  having  the  very  best.  Manufac- 
turers furnish  solid  boxes  that  weigh  only  seven 
pounds,  are  exact  in  size,  trim  in  appearance,  and 
will  last  for  fifteen  or  twenty  years,  if  cared  for 
properly.  Other  boxes,  slatted  on  ends  and  sides, 
are  furnished  at  a  less  price,  and  are  less  sub- 
stantial. The  boxes,  bought  in  crates  of  a  dozen, 
cost  about  18  cents  apiece  for  the  soUd  ones  and 
14  cents  for  the  slatted. 

"The  potatoes  are  picked  up  after  the  digger 
and  placed  in  the  boxes,  the  unmerchantable 
tubers  being  left  on  the  ground.  A\lien  a  load  is 
ready,  the  boxes  are  handed  up  to  the  driver  of  the 
wagon,  and  while  he  takes  the  load  to  the  car,  cel- 
lar or  other  place  of  storage  another  load  is  made 
ready  by  the  pickers.  Returning,  the  driver  puts 
his  empty  boxes  out,  takes  on  his  load  of  full  ones, 
and  the  work  proceeds  with  a  minimum  amount 
of  handling.  If  the  potatoes  are  drawn  directly 
to  consumers,  neat  boxes  for  handling  them  are  a 
good  advertisement  as  well  as  a  means  of  saving 
labor,  time,  and  injury  to  the  stock. 


116  THE  POTATO 

"When  good  seed,  cut  to  two  eyes,  has  been 
planted  in  good  ground,  and  the  tillage  has 
been  right,  the  number  of  unmarketable  potatoes 
usually  is  small,  and  many  years  we  do  not  pick 
them  up.  It  is  the  practice  of  some  growers  to 
pick  up  all  sizes  together  and  then  to  sort  out 
those  that  are  not  merchantable,  using  the  best 
of  these  for  planting  and  the  remainder  for  stock 
feed.  The  small  tubers  are  not  the  most  desir- 
able for  use  as  seed.  If  there  is  a  considerable 
proportion  of  the  crop  that  is  too  small  for  market 
it  should  be  gathered  from  the  ground  after  the 
merchantable  potatoes  have  been  taken  up." 

The  practice  of  washing  potatoes  is  not  com- 
mon, and  there  is  a  general  idea  that  it  is  detri- 
mental, but  the  Wisconsin  Farmer  says  editorially : 

"A  good  deal  may  be  said  in  favor  of  the  prac- 
tice of  washing  potatoes,  provided  they  are  thor- 
oughly ripened  before  being  dug.  We  know  of 
one  instance  where  a  shipper  of  early  potatoes  re- 
fused to  fulfil  his  part  of  the  contract  on  account 
of  a  customer  having  washed  his  early  potatoes. 
He  said  that  washing  greatly  impaired  the  keeping 
quality  of  early  varieties.  However,  in  the  case  of 
mature  potatoes,  if  for  any  reason  they  are  dug  at 
a  time  when  the  dirt  adheres  to  them,  it  will  un- 
doubtedly pay  to  give  them  a  good  washing. 
Nevertheless,  it  is  highly  important  that  they  be 
thoroughly  sun-dried  before  they  are  stored  in 
the  cellar  or  cave  or  before  they  are  placed  in 
sacks.  It  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  dried 
mud  adhering  to  potatoes  will  carry  a  certain 
amount  of  germ  life,  and  it  is  not  strange  if  some 
of  this  form  of  life  tends  to  induce  decay.     One 


THE  POTATO  117 

grower  informs  us  that  he  makes  a  practice  of 
thoroughly  washing  his  potatoes  every  year,  after 
which  they  are  stored  in  bushel  boxes.  The 
claim  is  made  that  by  this  method  the  highest 
market  price  is  obtained  on  account  of  the  fine, 
clean  appearance  of  the  tubers,  and  also  on  ac- 
count of  the  splendid  condition  in  which  they  keep 
stored  in  this  fashion." 

An  Iowa  grower  believes  in  the  practice  of  wash- 
ing potatoes,  and  says  in  the  Wisconsin  Farmer: 

"According  to  my  experience,  too  much  cannot 
be  said  in  favor  of  throughly  cleaning  potatoes  as 
soon  as  they  are  dug.  The  finest  crop  I  ever  saw 
was  rotting  in  the  ground  on  account  of  the  w  eather 
being  hot  and  moist.  As  soon  as  they  were  dug 
the  spray-pump  was  started  and  the  potatoes 
thoroughly  washed.  They  were  then  allowed  to 
dry  before  being  housed,  and  after  being  sorted 
not  a  solitary  tuber  decayed.  I  had  another  ex- 
perience that  tends  to  corroborate  this  practice. 
Over  a  year  ago  I  bought  some  potatoes,  but  when 
they  were  delivered  they  were  covered  with  dry 
mud.  These  potatoes  when  cooked  had  a  nau- 
seating taste,  and  in  several  instances  had  a  sick- 
ening effect.  I  came  to  the  conclusion  that  when 
potatoes  were  left  in  this  dirty  condition  germs 
of  disease  were  present,  and  it  is  my  opinion  that 
the  law  should  prohibit  the  marketing  of  potatoes 
in  this  condition.  Not  only  are  they  unwhole- 
some, but  they  are  much  more  apt  to  decay  than 
if  they  are  thoroughly  cleaned  l)y  washing.'* 

Another  grower  condemns  the  washing  of  the 
tubers  and  says: 


118  THE  POTATO 

"All  any  one  need  do  to  know  whether  it  spoils 
them  or  not  is  just  to  try  it.  Cook  some  that 
have  been  washed  a  week  or  two;  then  cook  some 
that  have  been  dug  when  the  ground  was  in  con- 
dition —  the  more  fresh  dirt  among  them  the 
better  —  and  see  how  much  better  and  more 
mealy  and  palatable  they  are  than  the  washed  ones. 
Potatoes  that  are  to  be  kept  over  winter  should 
be  left  in  the  ground  as  long  as  possible,  until  there 
is  danger  of  freezing  them.  Then  dig  when  the 
ground  is  in  condition,  not  when  the  mud  will 
stick  to  them,  and  the  more  fresh  dirt  the  more 
brittle  and  fresh  they  will  come  out  in  the  spring." 

The  natural,  normal  way  to  take  potatoes  from 
the  ground  and  store  them  is  when  the  soil  is  dry. 
When  this  is  the  case  no  washing  is  necessary. 

Whether  harm  comes  with  washing  depends  on 
the  drying  and  after  care,  and  the  need  of  washing 
depends  on  the  amount  of  mud  adhering  to  the 
tubers  when  they  are  dug. 

Good,  hard  headed,  common  sense  is  required 
in  all  harvesting  operations,  and  no  rules  can  cover 
all  conditions. 


CHAPTER  XI 

POTATO    MACHINERY 

DURING  the  past  decade  great  improvements 
have  been  made  in  agricultural  machinery. 
The  up-to-date  farmer  of  to-day  is  not  con- 
tent with  old  methods  or  tools,  if  there  is  no  better 
reason  for  their  use  than  that  his  father  or  grand- 
father used  them.  Every  machine  that  will  do 
work  more  cheaply  or  better  finds  a  welcome  on 
the  strictly  modern  business-farmer's  place. 

The  senior  author  has  been  intensely  interested 
in  the  betterment  of  machines  that  will  render 
farm  operations  more  effective.  Over  forty  years 
ago  he  made  plows  and  agricultural  machinery  in 
a  plow  factory  in  Illinois,  and  appreciates  the  situ- 
ation more  than  one  less  conversant  with  the 
details  of  the  machinery  business  both  from  manu- 
facturer's and  user's  standpoints. 

It  is  true  of  makers  of  potato  machinery  that  it 
is  their  desire  to  make  an  implement  that  will  do 
the  greatest  possible  service  for  the  user,  and  they 
welcome  suggestions  from  practical  growers  for 
improvements. 

During  the  past  twenty-five  years  the  senior 
author  has  been  responsible  for  a  great  many  im- 
provements to  machinery  now  in  use. 

The  increasing  interest  in  farm  machinery,  or 
farm  mechanics,  is  indicated  by  the  fact  that 
practically  all  of  the  leading  agricultural  colleges 
now  have  departments  devoted  to  this  subject. 

119 


120  THE  POTATO 

It  is  the  intention  of  the  authors  to  present  in 
this  book  descriptions  and  illustrations  of  a  large 
number  of  implements  used  satisfactorily  in  the 
potato  industry.  This  will  enable  the  reader  to 
form  an  opinion  as  to  those  best  suited  to  his 
conditions. 

THE    IRON    AGE    MACHINERY 

The  following  machines  are  made  by  the  Bate- 
man  Manufacturing  Company,  Greenloch,  N.  J. : 

Iron  Age  {Improved  Robbins)  Planter 

This  planter  feeds  the  seed  automatically.  It 
shakes  the  seed  out  into  the  pockets  of  an  elevator 
wheel,  which  m  turn  drops  it  through  a  short  spout 
to  a  horizontal  feed  wheel,  also  provided  with 
pockets.  This  wheel  makes  one  complete  revo- 
lution in  front  of  the  boy  or  man  on  the  rear  seat; 
when  he  finds  a  pocket  that  has  no  seed  in  it,  he 
supphes  a  piece  from  a  pile  within  reach;  if  a 
pocket  gets  two  seed  pieces,  he  takes  one  out.  The 
result  is  that  you  get  one  seed  piece  in  every  space 
and  one  only.  You  can  understand  what  this 
means  if  you  will  consider  a  few  figures.  If  a 
normal  average  for  a  perfect  stand  were  150 
bushels  (and  this  is  very  reasonable)  5  per  cent, 
skips  would  mean  a  loss  of  seven  and  one  half 
bushels,  or  $3.75  per  acre  at  an  average  price  of 
50  cents.  It  costs  no  more  to  cultivate,  spray,  and 
fertilize  a  perfect  stand  than  it  does  one  with  skips 
here  and  there. 

Iron  Age  Riding  Cultivators 

Cultivators  should  have  all  of  the  necessary 
adjustments   for  narrow   or   wide   rows,   deep   or 


Iron  Auc  Potato  Hoc  or  Ri(l<i;er 


[ 


Iron  Ago  Riding  Cultivator 


Iron  Ag(^  Potato  Digger 


Iron  Age  Trad  ion  S|)rayer 


on  Age  (Improved  Robljinsj  Potalo  Planter 


Seed  pieces  in  place  in   the 
furrow  opened  by  the  Iron 


Age  Planter 


Dowden  Potato  Digger 


THE  POTATO  121 

shallow  cultivation,  and  the  teeth  changed  quickly 
to  any  position  in  the  row  while  the  team  is  in 
motion.  All  of  these  necessary  adjustments  are 
found  on  Iron  Age  cultivators.  They  are  of  many 
styles  and  combinations  to  fit  the  varied  conditions 
of  ground  and  cultivation  desired.  Pivot  wheels 
are  used  on  three  styles  —  they  make  guiding 
easy.  High  or  low  wheels  —  six  or  eight  hoes  — 
for  one  or  two  rows,  break-pin  hoes,  spring  hoes, 
or  spring  teeth  can  be  furnished.  The  hoes  are 
kept  in  the  ground  by  spring  pressure;  thorough 
cultivation  is  the  result.  Disk,  plow,  ridging,  and 
other  attachments  are  furnished. 

Iron  Age  Traction  Sprayers 

The  Iron  Age  sprayer  drives  from  the  centre,  has 
a  perfect  working  relief  valve  and  a  big  air  chamber, 
is  thoroughly  protected  against  corrosion,  and  is 
easily  shut  off  from  the  seat.  It  is  furnished  in 
four,  six,  or  seven  row  sizes,  with  55  or  100  gallon 
wood  or  55  gallon  steel  tanks,  and  revolving  mixer, 
single  or  double  action  pumps.  It  is  made  for  one 
or  two  horses. 

Iron  Age  Potato  Hoe  or  Ridger 

These  tools  are  adjustable  at  any  position  on 
the  frame  by  simple  eccentric  levers.  They  are 
also  adjustable  for  angle  of  the  blades,  position  of 
the  handles,  etc.  Made  with  plain  steel  blades, 
or  with  detachable  shoes  for  stony  ground,  or  with 
twenty-inch  disks. 

Iron  Age  Potato  Diggers 

The  Iron  Age  line  comprises  four  machines: 
No.  125  is  a  rotary  disk,  low  down  machine  for 
light,    sandy    soils;    No.    127,    same    digger    with 


122  THE  POTATO 

elevator  and  shaker  attached;  No.  150,  medium  size 
elevator  and  twenty-eight-inch  wheels;  No.  155, 
large  elevator,  thirty -two-inch  wheels,  and  kickers 
for  heavy  conditions,  as  to  ground,  grass,  vines, 
etc.  They  have  steel  spurs  on  the  wheels,  and  are 
designed  so  that  wearing  parts  can  be  easily  and 
cheaply  replaced.  They  can  be  thrown  in  and 
out  of  gear  from  the  seat.  The  plow  is  adjustable 
so  as  to  get  all  of  the  potatoes  with  as  little  cutting 
as  possible  and  as  little  soil,  and  so  that  draft  will 
not  be  too  great. 

THE   JOHN    DEERE   MACHINERY 

The  machinery  described  in  the  following  para- 
graphs is  made  by  Deere  &  Company,  Moline,  111. : 

John  Deere  Two-Way  Sulky  Plow 

A  fine  plow  for  potato  growers  and  truck  farmers. 
It  turns  all  the  soil  one  way,  leaving  no  dead  fur- 
rows or  back-furrow  ridges.  In  irregular  fields  it 
leaves  no  crooked  dead  furrows  —  and  all  furrows 
are  straight.  When  used  in  arid  climates,  harrow- 
ing and  planting  can  be  kept  up  with  the  plowing. 
In  this  way  evaporation  is  checked  and  seed  is 
planted  in  moist  soil. 

John  Deere  Model  "5"  Flexible  Disk  Harrow 

No  tools  equal  a  good  disk  for  finely  pulveriz- 
ing the  soil.  One  or  two  diskings  make  a  nice, 
deep,  mellow  seed  bed  for  potatoes. 

Spring  pressure  enables  this  harrow  to  penetrate 
and  cultivate  an  even  depth  the  full  width  of  cut. 
Third  lever  controls  spring,  hence  operator  can 
set  the  disks  for  thorough  work  in  all  conditions. 
Either  solid  or  cutaway  disk  blades  may  be  had. 


MOLlNT.  ILL 

Deere  Disk  Harrow 


Deere  Potato  Digger 


molintTiu. 


Deere  Shaker  Tolalo  Digger 


Deere  ( "ultivator 


HOUNl.  ll-L 


Deere  Two-Wav  Flow 


MtillM.'iM. 

Deere  Double-Aetion  Disk  Harrow 


Picker"  in  Aspinwall  Planter 


Aspinwall  Two-Row  Planter 


Aspinwall  Planter  with  Fertilizer 
Attachment 


Aspinwall  Potato  Sorter 


THE  POTATO  123 

John  Deere  Double-Action  Disk  Harrow 

Double  disking  saves  one  half  in  time  and  labor, 
and  secures  better  results  than  two  single  diskings, 
because  the  soil,  freshly  broken  by  the  first  selec- 
tion, is  pulverized  by  the  second  section  without 
giving  any  opportunity  for  drying  out  and  harden- 
ing. Front  section  is  out-throw,  rear,  in-throw, 
leaving  the  land  surface  level.  Furnished  with 
both  solid  and  cutaway  disks. 

John  Deere  KA-Pivot  Axle  Cultivator 

This  machine  is  especially  good  for  cultivating 
potatoes,  because  it  will  work  in  wide  or  narrow 
rows  and  rigs  can  be  spaced  to  suit  lean  or  bushy 
rows.  AYheels  are  shifted  by  foot  pedals  which 
make  it  easy  to  guide  cultivator  and  dodge  plants 
out  of  line  with  row.  Spring  tooth  rigs,  disk  or 
moldboard  hillers  can  be  used  on  a  John  Deere 
KA  cultivator.  It  is  equipped  with  spring  trip 
or  pin  break  rigs.  Longer,  narrow  shovels  are  also 
used  on  this  cultivator  in  some  districts  in  the  West 
where  extra  deep  cultivation  is  required. 

Deere  Potato  Digger 

The  Deere  potato  digger  has  been  in  successful 
use  for  many  years,  and  is  equal  to  any  require- 
ment that  may  be  made  on  it.  It  works  with  very 
light  draft  and  throws  the  potatoes  out  of  the 
ground  without  cutting,  leaving  the  ground  in 
good  shape.  The  gauge  wlieel  regulates  the  depth 
and  helps  to  steady  the  digger. 

JoJin  Dccrc  Shaker  Potato  Digger 

An  ideal  implement  for  the  man  who  grows  a 
limited  area  of  potatoes.     Sprocket,  which  runs  on 


124  THE  POTATO 

ground,  gives  hinged  grating  and  up-and-down 
motion.  This  shakes  out  the  dirt  and  leaves  the 
tubers  in  a  clean,  compact  row.  Weed  fender  clears 
away  weeds  and  vines  ahead  of  blade.  This  dig- 
ger is  inexpensive  and  can  be  owned  by  any  one. 
A  wing  shovel  and  extra  bars  to  widen  grate  are 
furnished  for  sandy  soils. 

THE   ASPINWALL   MACHINERY 

The  Aspinwall  Manufacturing  Company,  Jack- 
son, Mich.,  makes  the  machinery  which  is  de- 
scribed in  the  following: 

Aspinwall  Potato  Planter  No.  3. 

This  planter  is  entirely  automatic.  The  picker 
represents  the  automatic  action  of  the  hand  in 
planting,  and  is  mechanical,  but  six  of  these  hands 
are  employed  for  all  distances  of  planting.  The 
distance  is  regulated  by  gears  instead  of  change  in 
number  of  pickers. 

With  the  Aspinwall  potato  planter  the  fertilizer 
attachment  is  used  largely  in  the  East. 

•  Aspinwall  Tioo-Roiv  Planter 

By  using  this  machine  there  is  a  saving  of  time 
and  labor,  one  man  and  team  doing  double  the 
work  of  the  single  row.  The  two  rows  are  abso- 
lutely equal  in  distance  apart,  w^hich  is  of  great 
advantage  when  using  a  two-row  cultivator,  as  it 
permits  of  very  close  cultivation.  The  draft  of  the 
machine  is  but  slightly  more  than  the  single  row. 
The  large  wheels  and  narrow  furrow  openers  reduce 
the  draft  and  compensate  for  the  increased  size  of 
the  machine.  Centre  draft.  The  hopper  capac- 
ity enables  planting  one  half  mile  without  refilling. 


Aspiiiwall  Potato  Planter 


Aspiiiwall  Sprayer 


Thompson's  Greeley  Potato  Sorter 


THE  POTATO  125 

Distance  of  planting  between  the  rows  is  adjustable 
to  suit  requirements.  The  furrow  openers  are  very 
narrow,  which  insures  planting  in  straight  lines. 
The  disk  coverers  are  set  inside  of  the  furrowers 
and  close  the  earth  into  the  individual  furrows 
with  a  single  disk. 

Aspinwall  Potato  Sprayers 

These  machines  are  made  with  attachments  for 
all  purposes,  including  orchard  attachment  and 
attachments  for  the  various  crops  grown  by  truck 
gardeners.  They  are  equipped  with  nozzles  in 
front,  adjustable  by  pedals  which  the  driver  can 
guide  so  as  to  deflect  the  spray  and  overcome  any 
tendency  of  the  wind  to  drive  it  from  the  rows  of 
potatoes.  The  spraying  capacity  is  four  rows  in 
one  operation,  or  twenty  acres  per  day.  Pressure 
is  from  60  to  120  pounds  and  adapted  to  spray 
Paris  green,  Bordeaux  mixture,  or  sulphate  of  iron 
used  with  the  broadcast  attachment  for  grain  fields. 

Aspinwall  Potato  Diggers 

The  Rotary  potato  digger  is  intended  to  dig 
potatoes  under  various  conditions.  In  operating 
the  machine  it  is  best  to  work  around  a  number  of 
rows  or  drills  of  potatoes  the  same  as  in  plowing 
or  mowing,  discharging  the  potatoes  constantly  to 
the  right  side  of  the  machine.  This  machine  is 
not  illustrated. 

Aspimvall  Potato  Sorter 

The  manufacturers  state  that  this  machine  will 
sort  from  500  to  1,000  bushels  per  day,  and  work  is 
superior  to  hand  work.  The  low-down  hopper 
makes  easy  work  when  shoveling  and  feeding  the 
machine.     It  may  be  run  by  hand  or  power,  as  re- 


126  THE  POTATO 

quired.  The  entire  work  is  under  the  control  of 
the  operator  and  any  potatoes  which  are  decayed  or 
ill-shaped  may  be  removed  while  the  work  is  pro- 
gressing. The  sorting  or  separation  divides  the 
potatoes  into  three  sizes. 

THOMPSON   MACHINERY 

The  Thompson  potato  sorter  is  made  by  James 
Thompson,  Greeley,  Col.,  and  is  largely  used 
in  the  West.  Mr.  Thompson  also  makes  bag 
holders  and  potato  baskets.  The  sorter  is  oper- 
ated by  rocking  back  and  forth  the  part  into 
which  the  potatoes  are  emptied,  the  small  potatoes 
dropping  through  the  screen  and  being  conveyed 
into  one  sack,  the  larger  ones  going  over  the  screen 
and  into  the  other  sack.  It  is  used  both  in  the 
cellar  and  field. 

By  laying  a  burlap  sack  over  the  upper  end  of 
the  screen  there  is  less  bruising  of  the  potatoes  as 
they  are  shoveled  or  emptied  on  the  sorter.  The 
sack  may  cover  one  quarter  to  one  third  of  the 
top  surface  of  the  sorter. 

THE    DOWDEN    MACHINERY 

The  Dowden  potato  digger,  made  by  the  Dow- 
den  Manufacturing  Company,  Prairie  City,  Iowa, 
weighs  1,140  pounds  and  is  drawn  by  two  or 
four  horses,  although  made  strong  enough  that  six 
may  be  used,  if  required. 

The  point,  or  "snout,"  of  the  digger  goes  under 
the  rows,  elevating  the  potatoes  over  an  apron 
made  of  rods  spaced  far  enough  apart  to  let  the 
dirt  fall  through,  but  close  enough  together  to 
carry  the  potatoes  over  and  deposit  them  on  the 
top  of  the  ground. 


Dowden  Potato  Digger  at  work  on  Mt.  So])ris  Farm 


*m:<cxi^. 


Iron  Age  Digger  at  work 


Hauling  potatoes  to  storehouse  in  "  liall'-sarks"  —  Mt.  Sopris  Farm 


v,«e 


v«W^ 


**" 


f.-^'if^  ' 


(..■vV"*^"" 


O 


be 
-Si 


2 


'H.w'^ 


--1 


-<^' 


*.    ^*  ^^ 


....^..,^.v;4^' ;^  V1?^  V--*:,^^J 


,  *.  ■-,?w--^t^ 


-\ 


I 


5»      %^. 


;»;■>-*.< 


CHAPTER  XII 

SELLING    AND    STORAGE 

DOES  it  pay  to  store  potatoes  or  sell  direct 
from  the  field  to  the  dealer,  and  if  storage 
pays  what  sort  of  structure  is  best? 

The  answer  to  the  first  must  be  made  by  the 
individual  grower.  The  element  of  chance  en- 
ters very  largely  into  this  problem,  to  a  greater 
degree,  perhaps,  than  with  any  other  farm  crop. 

Statistics  show  that  this  statement  is  true  — 
viz.,  that  the  farmer  who  has  favorable  conditions 
for  potato  growing  and  can  practise  a  good  rota- 
tion, who  will  grow  the  same  acreage  of  potatoes 
each  year  for  ten  years,  selling  half  at  digging 
time  and  storing  the  balance,  will  show  a  nice  an- 
nual profit  on  his  ten  years'  operations. 

To  say  that  prices  will  be  good  this  year  or  next, 
or  that  it  will  pay  to  sell  or  store  this  fall  or  any 
later  single  fall,  is  simply  making  a  guess. 

The  Government  reports  showing  acreage  and 
condition  of  crop  during  the  season  and  a  compari- 
son with  other  seasons  give  some  idea  of  what  to 
expect.  In  addition  to  this  the  grower  should  know  ^ 
what  other  districts  besides  his  own  are  in  position 
to  compete  with  him  in  his  natural  markets,  and 
the  condition  of  their  crop  is  another  fact  on  which 
to  base  his  guess.  Figuring  the  average  pro- 
duction in  the  United  States  at  about  ninetj' 
bushels  per  acre,  the  per  capita  consumption 
four  bushels,  and  the  population  of  the  country, 

127 


130 


THE  POTATO 


Wholesale  prices  of  ■potatoes  per  bushel,  1896-1909. 


Chicago. 

Milwaukee. 

St.  Louis. 

Cincinnati. 

Date. 

Burbank, 
per  bushel. 

Per  bushel. 

Burbank, 
per  bushel. 

Per  bushel.o 

Low. 

High. 

Low. 

High. 

Low. 

High. 

Low. 

High. 

1896 

Cenls. 
10 
18 
29 
26 
25 
30 
30 
38 
31 
18 

Cents. 

31 

62 

87 

75 

50 

125 

100 

85 

122 

72 

C<nU. 
10 
15 
25 
15 
20 
25 

Cents. 
35 

100 
90 
90 
80 

185 

Cenli. 
20 
21 
30 
25 
27 
18 
41 
40 
36 
27 

CerU>. 

45 

65 

85 

75 

64 

140 

105 

125 

125 

175 

JO.  60 

.90 

1.25 

1.10 

.32 

.30 

.90 

1.20 

1.20 

.25 

$1  35 

J897 

4.75 

1898 

3  75 

1899 

6  00 

1900 ^ 

1901 

.57 
1  20 

1902 

3  00 

1903 ^ 

35 
20 
10 

90 

120 

70 

3  00 

1904 

4  80 

J905 , 

80 

190C. 
January 

55 
47 
43 
67 
48 
60 

65 
57 
68 
63 
73 
87 

45 
35 
35 
60 
45 
60 
40 
35 
35 
25 
25 
25 

58 
60 
62 
62 
75 
80 
87 
60 
65 
40 
40 
40 

58 
63 
51 
65 
60 
65 
35 
37 
43 
48 
45 
40 

82 
61 
70 
68 
8S 
125 
75 
60 
62 
56 
65 
46 

.55 
.45 
.45 

.60 
.55 
.90 
.75 
.58 
.55 
.50 
.45 
.45 

65 

February 

62 

March 

75 

April ; 

85 

May 

75 

June 

1.05 
.90 

July...., 

August 

80 

Seoternber 

45 

40 

41 

ti40 

58 

47 

48 

US 

.60 
60 

October 

November 

.58 

Decern  ber / 

.47 

Year 

40 

R7 

25 

87 

35 

125 

.45 

1  05 

1907. 
January 

34 
37 
33 
33 
65 
32 
30 

45 
48 
47 
01 
75 
70 
50 

25 
25 
25 
25 
40 
30 
35 
30 
45 
40 
40 
40 

45 
45 
45 
CO 
70 
70 
90 
80 
75 
75 
65 
65 

43 
51 
43 
63 
74 
60 
50 
60 
45 
65 
S3 
65 

63 

56 
65 
68 
75 
78 
125 
95 
72 
70 
65 
64 

.45 

.48 
.50 
.40 
.70 
.60 
.25 
.70 
.60 
.60 
.60 
.50 

.50 

February 

.53 

March 

.53 

.80 

May 

.80 

.70 

.85 

.80 

60 
45 
45 

40 

60 
65 
63 
68 

.85 

October..., 

62 

N  ovem  ber 

65 

.65 

Year 

?0 

75 

25 

90 

43 

125 

.25 

85 

1908. 
January 

52 
58 
62 
00 
50 
63 
70 
68 
58 
60 
57 
60 

65 
73 
75 

77 
80 
150 
110 
90 
78 
81 
71 
77 

53. 
65 
63 

65 
58 
68 
65 
60 
CO 
54 
6S 
64 

75 
70 
70 
8Q 
80 
150 
110 
85 
80 
80 
70 
70 

62 
67 
71 
73 
65 
100 

69 
77 
78 
78 
74 
105 

.60 
.65 
.70 
.70 
.00 
.60 
1.10 
.85 
.76 
.65 
.65 
.65 

.68 

February 

82 

.80 

.85 

May 

.85 

June 

1  35 

July 

1  35 

1. 15 

September 

72 
67 

69 
69 

—  72 
70 
72 
75 

.85 

October    

80 

November..^ 

.  75 

December 

.80 

50 

150 

63 

150 

62 

105 

.60 

1  35 

1909. 
January 

60 
65 
80 
,85 
'70 
20 
15 
38 
42 
35 
15 
20 

79 

95 

93 

110 

150 

145 

125 

60 

65 

55 

50 

58 

60 
60 
70 
70 
SO 
39 
20 
40 
45 
40 
30 
30 

72 

88 

95 

115 

135 

105 

100 

90 

65 

60 

50 

50 

73 
80 
89 
92 
85 
40 
40 
35 
45 
42 
40 
40 

83 

93 

9S 

lOS 

102 

140 

110 

62 

72 

56 

52 

60 

.72 
.75 
.85 
.95 
.95 
.90 
.50 
.70 
.55 
.55 
.30 
.30 

.80 

March , 

.90 
.95 

April..  J 

1.15 

M^y 

1.00 

Tune. . . , . . , 

1.20 

July.   ..:. 

.95 

August 

.75 

September.   ,. 

.70 

October 

.60 

November 

.60 

December,  i 

.48 

Year 

15 

150 

20 

135 

35 

140 

.30 

1.20 

a  Pel  barrel  iot  1396-1899  md  1902-1901. 


t  Cotomon  to  fancy. 


New  potato  cellar  of  CoiiiinissiontM-  of  Ai,M-icullurc  A.  \\  .  Ciiliuan; 

Foxcrofl,  Maine 


/=^o  Tv<  7^0    -s-  Tofp.^  a^s: 


.Si/re  /*--  e  a     -*"<■ '  -    -S  ^  •  «f^ 


^/icf 


£'/G  Ku  tyo/t 


_S/Ve- 


^/e-i^eT/o/r 


Potato  storage  cellar  plans 


THE  POTATO 


131 


Average  farm  price  of  potatoes  per  bushel,  monthly,  7908-9. 


Month. 

Unlt«d 
States. 

North 
Atlantic 
States. 

South 
Atlantic 
StaUs. 

N.  Cen. 
States  Ea'st 
of  Miss.  R. 

N.  Cen. 
St-.tcs  West 
or  Miss.  R. 

South 
Ontral 
StatfS. 

Far  WcsN 
crn  States. 

1909. 

1908. 

1909. 

1906. 

1909. 

1908. 

1909. 

19a<!. 

1909. 

1906. 

1909. 

1903. 

1909. 

1908. 

January 

February 

March 

as. 

72.0 
73.3 
80.0 
86.3 
97.3 
97.7 
91.0 
85.1 
71.5 
64.3 
57.8 
54.9 

at. 

63.4 

69.6 
70.4 
73.3 
71.3 
77.8 
83.6 
78.0 
74.8 
69.2 
70.6 

Oj. 
74.5 
75.4 
77.2 
82.8 
93.6 
91.4 
91.2 
89.1 
77.6 
65.3 
58.5 
56.2 

as. 

04.9 

'73.0 
73.0 
79.2 
72.3 
70.4 
93.2 
87.8 
80.3 
71.9 
73.7 

as. 

83.2 
77.6 
90.3 
96.5 
101.3 
99.9 
94.5 
79.6 
76.7 
78.0 
70.7 
75.1 

Os. 
70.0 

84.2 
85.8 
SO- 4 
86.1 
80.6 
74.9 
75.3 
74.7 
76.5 
81.6 

On. 

09.4 
70.6 
77.1 
83.2 
97.6 
94.1 
79.5 
77.9 
60.9 
54.0 
47.2 
44.4 

as. 

55.5 

'59.7' 

64.8 

60. 8 
07.7 
80.6 
8.';.  9 
77.0 
74.9 
67.3 
07.0 

as. 

04.1 
60.9 
72.3 
81.9 
91.2 
99.0 
91.8 
70.8 
05.3 
61.9 
50.2 
53.  S 

as. 

02.5 

00.0' 
07.2 
07.3 
08.3 
7.i.  9 
73.4 
04.3 
04.0 
01.1 
02.6 

as. 

92.1 
87.9 
118.2 
117.0 
119.5 
113.4 
9.).  0 
77.9 
81.2 
91.8 
80.0 
80.3 

as. 

92.7 

ioo.'s' 

104.9 

in-i.  8 

91.4 
SO.  0 
80.8 
82.6 

87.1 
88.2 
88.9 

Os. 
00.9 
73.6 
83.5 
91.1 
100.5 
115.0 
115.1 
110.9 
81.1 
69.1 
58.0 
57.6 

as. 

62.7 
59  8 

April 

May 

61. « 
61.6 
68.7 
69.6 

75.2 
70.9 
67.8 

66.4 

Juno 

July 

August 

September 

October 

November 

December 

crop  is  dug,  or  a  few  days  thereafter,  must  be 
stored  in  frost-proof  buildings  or  pits. 

Potatoes  grown  in  southern  chmates  may  be 
stored  in  dark  warehouses  or  in  straw-covered  piles 
in  the  field. 

The  normal  losses  in  storage  from  October  to  May 
amount  to  5  to  12  per  cent,  of  the  total  bulk.  This 
does  not  include  losses  due  to  disease  or  sorting. 

It  has  been  estimated  that  of  the  total  storage 
loss  75  per  cent,  is  due  to  loss  of  moisture  and  25 
per  cent,  to  respiration.  The  potato  tuber  does 
not  die  when  taken  from  the  ground  and  placed 
in  a  cellar,  but  it  lives  by  using  some  of  the  food 
material  stored  up  in  its  cells.  The  material  used 
is  in  the  form  of  sugar,  which  a  ferment  forms 
from  starch.  Respiration  is  practically  stopped 
when  the  tuber  is  frozen  and  the  sweet  taste  of 
frozen  potatoes  is  due  to  accumulation  of  sugar. 

The  important  points  to  be  considered  in  potato 
storage  are: 

Conditions  to  keep  a  temperature  as  low  as  possible  with- 
out freezing; 

Conditions  to  keep  the  air  as  dry  as  possible,  and  a  place 
where  potatoes  may  be  kept  dark. 


132  THE  POTATO 

While  mining  at  an  altitude  of  1,000  feet  in 
Colorado,  a  good  many  years  ago,  the  senior 
author  of  this  work  met  a  prospector  who  was  going 
to  leave  the  country.  He  said  that  in  an  old 
tunnel  would  be  found  some  supplies,  including 
twelve  sacks  of  potatoes  which  had  been  put  there 
two  years  before.  These  the  prospector  gave  to 
him.  The  condition  of  these  potatoes  was  ap- 
parently the  same  as  when  they  were  dug;  they 
were  not  shriveled,  no  shrinkage  was  apparent, 
they  had  not  started  to  sprout,  and  when  cooked 
they  were  just  as  edible  as  when  dug  out  of  the 
ground.  There  had  been  an  airshaft  constructed 
at  the  end  of  the  tunnel  and  through  the  tunnel 
was  a  good  current  of  dry  air.  The  temperature 
was  uniformly  about  40  degrees  F.,  being  in  a 
rock  tunnel  200  feet  below  the  surface  of  the  ground. 
In  building  a  potato  cellar  he  tried  to  get  as  near 
those  conditions  as  possible. 

The  cellar  illustrated  is  about  50  by  200  feet.  At 
each  end  there  is  a  dead-air  space  ten  feet  square 
in  the  form  of  a  vestibule  between  the  outer  and 
inner  doors.  This  affords  protection  from  freez- 
ing. There  is  a  driveway  clear  through,  with 
bins  on  either  side,  skylights  and  ventilators  being 
placed  every  ten  feet.  The  temperature  of  the 
cellar  may  be  lowered  by  opening  the  doors  and 
letting  a  current  of  air  pass  through.  When  it  is 
too  cold  for  this,  the  ventilators  at  the  top  may 
be  opened.  The  best  ventilation  is  always  se- 
cured bj^  building  the  cellar  in  line  with  the  direc- 
tion of  the  prevailing  air  currents.  During  the 
winter  the  temperature  should  be  kept  as  near  32 
degrees  F.  as  possible;  it  is  best  when  it  does  not 
go  below  30  degrees  nor  above  36  degrees.  A  tem- 
perature of  28  degrees  F.  for  one  or  two  hours  will 


TIIE  POTATO  133 

not  freeze  potatoes  when  in  large  qnantitles.  In 
a  cold  country  some  means  for  providing  artificial 
heat  shoidd  be  provided.  In  the  spring  of  the 
year,  when  the  weather  becomes  warm,  the  cellar 
doors  are  kept  open  at  night  and  closed  in  the 
daytime. 

The  plans  submitted  give  a  general  idea  of  a 
satisfactory  cellar,  and  can  be  modified  to  suit 
conditions.  In  planning  the  size  of  the  structure 
it  is  safe  to  estimate  one  bushel  at  one  and  one 
fourth  cubic  feet. 

In  a  small  cellar  built  with  a  driveway  this 
space  need  not  be  wasted  but  filled  with  potatoes 
or  other  vegetables  after  the  bins  at  the  side  have 
been  filled. 

One  important  point  in  the  storage  of  potatoes 
is  to  reduce  the  temperature  to  as  low  a  point  as 
possible  directlj^  after  the  product  is  stored.  Put 
about  one  foot  of  potatoes  on  the  cellar  floor,  and 
by  the  time  the  entire  floor  is  covered  to  that 
depth  the  heat  from  those  potatoes  is  pretty  well 
carried  off  by  the  air  currents.  Then  add  another 
layer,  thus  properly  regulating  the  temperature  as 
the  storage  progresses.  Ordinarily,  when  the  cel- 
lar is  filled,  the  potatoes  are  piled  about  five  feet 
deep. 

There  are  many  types  of  potato  cellars,  each 
suited  to  individual  conditions  and  factors  which 
control  size,  material  used,  and  construction.  In 
Maine,  steam-heated,  double-wall  stone  masonry 
warehouses  are  used.  In  some  sections  of  the 
West  poles  and  timbers  are  used  largely  in  con- 
struction and  the  storage  space  is  largely  under 
ground.  Cellars  built  entirely  imder  ground  are 
used  in  some  other  localities. 

Pits,  covered  with  straw  and  earth,  are  used 


134  THE  POTATO 

to  store  thousands  of  bushels  of  the  world's  crop. 
The  principal  objection  to  these  is  the  absence  of 
control  over  conditions  during  the  coldest  weather. 
In  zero  weather  they  cannot  safely  be  opened  to 
haul  the  crop  to  market,  or  for  sorting  if  the  tubers 
are  rotting.  Heavy  rains  may  cause  damage  to 
pitted  potatoes.  A  grower  with  one  acre  can  af- 
ford to  have  a  ventilated  storehouse,  even  if  this 
is  only  a  well-covered  underground  cellar. 

Sorting  potatoes  that  have  started  to  rot  from 
freezing  or  disease  requires  a  cellar  that  can  be 
lighted  when  desired.  Careful  growing  to  pre- 
vent disease,  and  careful  handling  for  the  same 
purpose,  may  cost  a  httle  more  than  slipshod 
methods,  but  the  probability  of  marketing  a  crop 
without  the  expense  and  loss  of  rehandling  rotten 
potatoes  warrants  the  expense. 

Ventilation  devices,  such  as  open  partitions,  may 
be  used  to  advantage  when  large  quantities  of 
potatoes  are  stored  in  bulk. 

Sacked  potatoes  corded  in  piles  keep  well  in  a 
good  cellar,  and  when  sprouts  start  in  the  spring 
the  growth  of  these  may  be  checked  by  moving 
the  sacks.     A  bruised  sprout  dies. 

When  the  floor  is  of  dirt,  it  is  well  to  use  some 
sort  of  material,  preferably  strips  of  wood,  be- 
tween the  dirt  and  the  potatoes,  to  prevent  rot. 

It  is  important  that  potatoes  be  free  from  dirt 
when  taken  from  the  field  to  the  cellar.  Dirty 
potatoes  do  not  keep  well,  because  of  the  dirt  that 
adheres  to  the  individual  tubers,  and  that  which 
falls  off  and  fills  up  the  air  spaces  between  the 
potatoes,  preventing  free  ventilation. 

A  very  satisfactory  place  to  build  a  cellar  is  on 
a  knoll,  thus  insuring  perfect  water  drainage  and 
a  good  circulation  of  air. 


THE  POTATO  135 

There  is  no  limit  to  the  ingenuity  of  the  builder 
in  providing  conveniences  in  the  way  of  sorting 
rooms  and  divisions  in  a  potato  cellar. 

It  is  hard  to  conceive  a  well-planned,  diversified 
farm  anywhere  in  the  temperate  zone  that  is  com- 
plete without  a  storage  cellar  for  potatoes  and 
other  vegetables.  A  "hoed"  crop,  requiring  deep, 
thorough  cultivation,  is  an  important  factor  in  a 
rotation  of  crops,  and  a  business  farmer  is  not 
living  up  to  his  possibilities  when  he  grows  a  crop 
that  for  lack  of  storage  facilities  he  must  sell  in  a 
short  time  after  its  maturity,  thereby  placing  him- 
self at  the  mercy  of  the  middleman  and  retailer. 

In  the  well-regulated  farm  we  have  in  mind  a 
fairly  definite  proportion  of  the  farm  would  be  in 
potatoes  and  roots  each  year,  one  part  of  the 
potatoes  to  be  sold  at  digging  time,  the  balance 
held  for  later  marketing;  and  a  quantity  of  roots 
always  stored  for  livestock  feeding.  This  system 
makes  a  storage  cellar  as  important  a  factor  as  the 
stock  barns. 

Following  are  specifications  for  the  potato  cellar 
illustrated: 

To  be  built  with  eight-inch  concrete  walls  with 
six-inch  footing,  one  foot  below  floor  line.  Inside 
width  thirty-six  feet,  making  twenty-seven  feet 
storage  space  and  a  nine-foot  driveway.  Length 
to  accommodate  the  amount  of  potatoes  to  be 
stored.  Height  of  side  walls  seven  feet  from  floor 
line,  three  and  one  half  feet  underground  level, 
centre  ten  feet  from  floor  line.  Heavy  posts  to 
be  set  every  ten  feet  along  each  side  of  driveway. 
Round  posts  would  answer  for  this  purpose  as 
well  as  the  more  expensive  sawed  lumber. 

On  top  of  these  posts  is  run  a  ten-inch  by  ten- 


136  THE  POTATO 

inch  stringer  or  girder  the  length  of  the  building. 
It  rests  on  the  concrete  of  each  end.  This  is  the 
support  for  the  rafters ;  all  rafters  two  inches  by  ten 
inches. 

Two-inch  by  six-inch  plate  is  bolted  to  the  top  of 
the  concrete  wall  for  the  rafters  to  be  nailed  to. 

A  portion  of  the  cellar  can  be  fitted  with  shelves, 
or  drawers  for  tray  storage  of  different  kinds  of 
seed  potatoes. 

The  yield  of  potatoes  in  this  country  can  be 
very  greatly  increased  by  more  careful  selection 
and  storage  of  seed.  Growers  in  Europe  find  it 
profitable  to  store  selected  potatoes,  to  be  used 
whole  for  seed,  in  trays.  This  is  especially  desir- 
able for  early  potatoes.  With  this  system,  stubby 
strong  sprouts  are  grown  on  the  seed  tubers  before 
they  are  planted. 

On  top  of  rafters  wire  netting  is  placed.  On  this 
is  placed  fifteen  inches  to  twentj^-four  inches  of 
straw;  then  well  covered  with  earth.  Straw  is  a 
good  insulator  and  absorbs  moisture.  Any  kind 
of  tight,  rainproof  outer  covering  may  be  used 
above  the  earth  if  conditions  make  this  necessary. 

Ventilators  are  placed  every  twenty  feet,  with 
tight  fitting  cover  on  top  and  hinged  sash  on  bot- 
tom. 

Doors  to  be  made  of  three-fourths-inch  flooring, 
to  be  of  a  double  thickness,  with  heavy  building 
paper  between  the  boards. 

In  places  where  cement  is  much  more  expen- 
sive than  lumber,  this  building  could  be  built  by 
setting  posts  and  making  a  frame  wall. 

The  Colorado  Agricultural  College  built  a  cellar 
sixty  by  eighty  feet  at  a  cost  of  about  $1 ,150.  Piled 
fiv^e  feet  deep  and  with  the  driveway  filled  this 


THE  POTATO  137 

would  hold  about  19,500  bushels.  It  is  estimated 
that  a  farmer  could  build  a  cellar  of  like  capacity 
for  a  cash  outlay  of  $900.  They  estimate  the 
cost  of  a  cellar  at  from  7  to  30  cents  per  hundred- 
weight of  potatoes  stored  —  depending  on  the  per- 
manence of  the  structure. 

Wliere  large  quantities  of  potatoes  are  to  be 
handled,  it  is  well  to  have  a  switch  run  to  the  cellar 
and  load  direct  from  the  cellar  to  the  car  by  use 
of  a  small  engine  and  belt  to  carry  the  filled  sacks. 

Potatoes  for  seed  in  Europe  are  stored  in  crates, 
insuring  more  uniform  conditions  for  each  tuber. 

Keeping  potatoes  in  the  South  is  a  problem.  It 
is  very  desirable  to  keep  those  grown  in  the  spring 
for  fall  planting.  In  a  Bulletin  of  the  Florida  Ex- 
periment Station,  J.  F.  Mitchell  says: 

*'The  method  that  has  proved  uniformly  suc- 
cessful at  the  station  has  been  to  take  a  slat  crate, 
place  a  layer  of  pine  straw  needles  in  the  bottom, 
then  a  layer  of  potatoes,  covering  them  with  a 
layer  of  pine  straw,  and  continue  the  process  until 
the  crate  is  filled.  Finally,  the  crate  is  covered 
with  a  layer  of  pine  straw  and  stored  in  the  barn 
without  further  attention.  On  taking  the  po- 
tatoes out  in  the  fall  they  have  been  found  to  be 
sound  and  fresh  in  appearance  and  there  has  been 
no  difficulty  as  to  their  sprouting  when  planted. 
Fall  planting  at  the  station  has  just  been  com- 
pleted. The  potatoes  cared  for  as  above  described 
were  in  prime  condition;  in  fact,  they  were  as  good 
as,  if  not  better  than,  seed  potatoes  shipped  from 
the  North. 

Storing  potatoes  in  oat  straw  proved  a  failure 
on  account  of  the  tendency  of  the  potatoes  to 
decay.     Spreading  the  potatoes  on  a  board  floor 


138  THE  POTATO 

was  unsuccessful,  as  the  potatoes  turned  green  and 
shriveled,  being  then  unfit  for  either  shipping  or 
planting.  On  trying  a  mixture  of  lime  and  dry 
sand,  in  the  proportion  of  one  pint  of  lime  to  a 
bushel  of  sand,  it  was  found  that,  while  the  po- 
tatoes did  not  decay,  they  were  no  longer  viable, 
the  lime  apparently  killing  the  eyes  and  thereby 
preventing  them  from  sprouting  successfully.  Dry 
sand  alone  produced  better  results." 

In  *' Bulletin  No.  2,  Volume  8,"  of  the  Com- 
missioner of  Agriculture  of  the  State  of  Maine,  is 
given  the  following  description  of  a  potato  cellar 
built  by  Hon.  A.  W.  Gilman,  Foxcroft,  Maine, 
the  Commissioner: 

"This  house  and  plan  are  recommended  to 
any  who  intend  to  grow  potatoes  for  a  series  of 
years.  This  building  is  located  on  a  side  hill,  and 
is  fifty  feet  long  by  thirty  feet  wide,  and  serves 
both  as  a  storehouse  for  potatoes  and  for  the  hous- 
ing of  farm  implements. 

"The  bottom  is  concrete,  the  walls  are  of  grout 
coated  on  the  outside  and  inside  with  cement  to 
prevent  the  moisture  soaking  through.  They  are 
eight  feet  high,  eighteen  inches  wide  at  the  bottom, 
ten  inches  at  the  top.  The  plates  which  are  used 
for  sills  and  set  on  these  walls  are  chambered  an 
inch  and  a  half  both  on  the  outside  and  inside. 
These  pieces  are  filled  with  cement  to  keep  the 
cold  air  out.  The  sleepers  on  which  the  floor  is 
laid  are  six  inches  square.  These  are  boarded  on 
top  with  a  double  floor  with  tar  paper  between, 
and  single  boarded  underneath,  thus  giving  a 
dead-air  space  of  six  inches.  The  rafters  are  nine 
feet  long,  coming  up  nearly  perpendicular,  giving 


THE  POTATO  139 

more  storage  space.  The  second  rafters  are  fifteen 
feet  long,  forming  the  roof. 

"The  part  that  forms  the  cellar  proper  is  thirty- 
eight  feet  long,  the  remaining  twelve  feet  making 
a  room  for  sorting  and  packing  potatoes.  The 
cellar  is  divided  by  two  partitions,  making  three 
bins  each  ten  feet  wide.  Each  bin  has  trap  doors 
in  the  centre  of  the  floor  covering  that  bin.  Each 
trap  is  about  five  feet  long  by  eighteen  inches  wide, 
with  three  feet  between  each  trap. 

"The  potato  bins,  each  thirty -eight  feet  long, 
are  partitioned  off  from  the  sorting  room.  Both 
sides  of  the  partition  are  boarded  up  with  matched 
boards.  A  double  door  leads  from  the  sorting 
room  into  each  bin.  These  doors  are  closed  in  the 
coldest  weather.  The  sorting  room  has  two  win- 
dows for  fight  and  air. 

"If  the  potatoes  begin  to  sweat  in  storage  or 
need  ventilation,  the  trap  doors  can  be  raised,  and 
the  doors  from  the  bins  into  the  sorting  room  can 
be  opened,  giving  a  perfect  system  of  ventilation, 
which  soon  dries  the  potatoes  off. 

"The  potatoes  are  removed  fom  the  storage 
house  through  the  sorting  room,  the  floor  of  which 
is  on  a  level  with  the  road  outside,  thus  saving 
much  labor. 

"Bill  of  material  for  this  storage  house.  (Esti- 
mates furnished  by  W.  L.  Brown,  Foxcroft,  Maine) : 


No.  of 

pieces 

Size 

Lengths 

16 

4x6  Posts  for  cellar  partition 

8  ft. 

6 

6x6  End  and  cross  sills 

30  ft. 

5 

6x6  Side  sills 

20  ft. 

40 

2x6  Floor  timbers 

20  ft. 

20 

2x6  Floor  timbers 

12  ft. 

60 

2x5  Rafters 

9  ft. 

6  in. 


140  THE  POTATO 

Bill  of  Material  —  continued 
No.  of 
pieces  Size  Lengths 

60      2x5  Rafters  13  ft. 

Plates  250  lin.  ft. 

20      2x6  Beams  22  ft. 

50      2x4  Studding  for  gables  12-16  ft. 

8  M  Boards  P.I.S.  includes  double 

floors  matched  and  beaded 
pine  for  doors  250  ft. 

15  squares  Neponset  waterproof  paper  for  floors. 

5  M  Sheathing  for  cellar,  ceiling  and  cross  partition. 
22  M  XI  Shingles  with  four  rolls  sheathing  paper,  or 
22                   Squares  1-ply  Paroid  roofing  for  roof. 

500  feet  5-inch  clear  spruce  clapboards  with  one  roll 

paper  for  gables. 
600  feet  Pine  finish. 

6  9  "  X  3"  12-lighted  windows  and  frames. 
1  M  Brick  for  chimney. 

All  timber  is  spruce.  If  of  fir  add  one  inch  to  depth  of  all 
sUls  and  floor  timbers. 

Grout  wall  (150  lin.  ft.  8  ft.  high)  and  cement  floor  would 
cost  about  $250." 


CHAPTER  Xin 

COST    OF    GROWING    POTATOES YIELD  — - 

PRICES PROFITS 

THE  yield  of  a  crop  of  potatoes,  the  cost  of 
growing  and  the  consequent  profits,  vary 
not  only  with  conditions,  but  with  indi- 
vidual operators  under  similar  conditions.  In 
common  with  every  other  phase  of  agriculture, 
and  everything  else  in  the  world,  the  individuality 
of  the  man  in  charge  is  the  most  potent  factor. 

The  price  is  a  proposition  that  the  individual 
grower  has  no  control  of  and  varies  with  the 
world's  supply  and  demand. 

Average  yields  do  not  represent  the  possibilities 
of  the  business,  and  are  not  fair  to  the  industry. 
The  best  growers  always  produce  crops  far  in  ex- 
cess of  the  average  for  a  district  or  a  community. 
The  average  producer  of  potatoes  is  not  a  potato 
grower  in  the  strict  sense  of  the  term  —  he  is 
simply  a  farmer  growing  potatoes  and  giving  little, 
if  any,  thought  or  study  to  the  "reasons  why"  for 
various  operations. 

The  estimates  and  figures  which  follow  regard- 
ing prices  of  the  various  operations  and  the  profits 
in  potato  growing  show  the  possibilities  and  prob- 
abilities in  various  sections.  The  best  grower  may 
make  larger  profits  than  some  of  these  — poor 
growers  nmch  less. 

In  the  Twin  Falls  countrv  in  southern  Idaho 
the  yield  of  potatoes  is  from  100  to  700  bushels 

141 


142  THE  POTATO 

per  acre.     The  cost  of  producing  a   150-bushel 
crop  is  estimated  as  follows: 

Plowing $  3.00 

Harrowing .75 

Floating 1.00 

Seed,  average  planting  700  lbs.  at  2c 14.00 

Planting 2.50 

Irrigating  first  year 5 .  00 

Cultivating  three  times  at  50c 1 .  50 

Digging 1.50 

Picking  —  150  bu.  at  4c 6.00 

Sacks  —  75  at  7c 5.25 

Hauling  to  pit 2 .  00 

Total $44.00 

If  potatoes  are  worth  50  cents  a  bushel,  this  crop 
would  sell  for  $75,  leaving  a  profit  of  $30.50  per 
acre,  not  deducting  rent  or  interest  or  taxes. 

If,  however,  the  grower  produces  a  600-bushel 
crop,  the  cost  of  producing  (figuring  twice  as  much 
seed  and  increased  cost  of  the  operations)  would 
be  about  $95.75.  The  crop  would  sell  (at  50 
cents  a  bushel)  for  $300,  leaving  a  profit  of  $204.25. 

In  their  work  on  "Potato  Culture"  (published 
by  A,  I.  Root  Co.  Medina,  Ohio),  T.  B.  Terry  of 
Hudson,  Ohio,  and  A.  I.  Root  of  Medina,  Ohio, 
estimate  the  cost  as  follows: 

Plowing $  2.00 

Harrowing  with  Thomas  and  three  horses    ...  33 

Rolling 25 

Eight  bushels  seed  at  50  cents  average  .      .      .      .  4.00 

Cutting  to  one  eye 1 .  50 

Planting  with  planter 1 .  00 

Harrowing  three  times 45 

Harrowing  four  times  with  weeder 80 

Cultivating  eight  times,  once  in  a  row    .      .      .      .  3 .  36 

Bugs 2.00 

Hand  puhing  or  cutting  weeds 75 


THE  POTATO  143 

Digging  with  four  horses 2.50 

Picking  up  and  storing 3,00 

Marketing  three-mile  haul 6 .  00 

Manure 5.00 

Interest  on  value  of  land  $100,  at  6  per  cent.    .      .  6.00 

$38.94 

If  the  crop  makes  250  bushels  and  sells  for  40 
cents  a  bushel,  the  profit  will  be  as  follows: 

250  bushels  at  40  cents $100.00 

Cost  of  production 38.94 

$  61.06 

Lawrence  G.  Dodge,  scientific  Assistant  in  the 
Bureau  of  Plant  Industry,  gives,  in  "Farmers' 
Bulletin  465"  of  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agri- 
culture, the  following: 

"The  accompanying  table  represents  the  usual 
expense  of  growing  an  acre  of  potatoes  in  Aroo- 
stook County,  Maine,  and  in  many  parts  of  Mich- 
igan and  Wisconsin.  In  fact,  the  second  column  of 
figures  will  represent  the  expense  put  into  growing 
the  crop  in  most  localities  where  potato  growing 
is  carried  on,  on  a  less  expensive  and  through- 
going  basis: 


Cost  of  supplies  and 

labor  with  rent 

of  land 

Maine 

Wisconsin 

Cost  of  supplies  and 

labor  with  rent 

of  land 

Maine 

Wisconsin 

Plowing   . 
Harrowing  .  . 
Fertilizer.    .  . 
Seed   .      .      . 
Cutting    .    .  . 
Planting  . 

ai.5o 

50 

24.00 

5.00 

75 

75 

§1.25 
25 

2.50 
60 
60 

Cultivating   . 
Spraying. . 
Digging    .      . 
Rent  of  land . 

Total 

^^3.50 
3.00 
6.00 

15.00 

§1.90 

*80 

2.10 

5.00 

00.00 

15.00 

Tor  beetles  only 


144  THE  POTATO 

"The  more  expensive  method  of  growing  potatoes 
usually  gives  a  yield  of  275  bushels  or  more  to  the 
acre.  Unless  an  application  of  barnyard  manure 
is  made  in  addition  to  the  expense  estimated,  at 
an  added  cost  of  from  $5  to  $10  per  acre,  the  less 
expensive  method  rarely  produces  more  than  125 
bushels  per  acre  and  in  a  great  many  instances 
decidely  less  than  100  bushels  per  acre.  The  in- 
crease in  yield  as  a  result  of  the  more  costly  method 
is  suflBcient  to  more  than  pay  the  difference  in 
cost,  supposing  potatoes  to  sell  as  low  as  33J  cents 
a  bushel.  One  hundred  and  twenty-five  bushels 
per  acre  grown  at  a  cost  of  $15  per  acre  and  sold 
at  33J  cents  a  bushel  yield  a  net  profit  of  $26.66 
per  acre.  Two  hundred  and  seventy-five  bushels 
per  acre  grown  at  a  cost  of  $60  per  acre  and  sold 
at  33 J  cents  per  bushel  yield  a  net  profit  of  $31.66 
per  acre.  The  second  profit  is  $5  more  per  acre 
than  the  first. 

"A  farmer  in  Van  Buren  County,  Mich.,  states 
that  his  potato  crop,  mostly  marketed  in  the  fall, 
sold  at  an  average  price  of  44  cents  a  bushel  for  a 
period  of  ten  years.  At  the  latter  price  the  more 
expensive  method  of  culture  would  yield  a  profit 
of  $61  per  acre,  against  $40  from  the  cheaper 
method.  Furthermore,  some  of  the  leading  potato 
dealers  of  the  North  have  stated  emphatically 
that  a  better  quality  of  potatoes  is  normally  ob- 
tained with  large  yields  than  with  small." 

The  dean  of  the  College  of  Agriculture  of  the 
University  of  Maine,  Dr.  William  D.  Hurd,  says: 

**Many  questions  are  asked  as  to  the  cost  of 
growing  an  acre  of  potatoes.  So  many  things, 
different  circumstances,  facilities  for  carrying  on 


THE  POTATO  145 

labor,  kind  of  season,  etc.,  enter  into  the  problem  of 
cost  in  such  varying  proportions  that  it  is  almost 
impossible  to  give  statistics  which  will  prove  of 
much  value  to  others.  From  records  for  several 
years  on  the  college  farm  at  Orono,  the  cost  of 
growing  a  ten-acre  field  of  potatoes  is  about  as 
follows:  Man  and  team  labor  are  reckoned  at 
$3. .50  per  day,  extra  men  at  $1.50  per  day. 

Ten-acre  field 

Plowing  at  $2  per  acre $20.00 

Harrowing  five  limes,  $3.50  per  acre     ....  17.50 

Fertilizer  (Iiomo  mixture)  $30  a  ton       ....  225.00 

Seed  —  130  bushels,  75  cents  a  bu.shel         .      .      .  97.50 

Disinfecting  seed  (labor  and  material)         .      .      .  3.00 

Cutting  seed  (by  liand)  at  6  cents  per  bushel         .  7.80 

Planting,  team  and  two  men  three  days,  $5            .  15.00 

Harrowing  or  weeding  before  crop  is  up,  four  times  10.50 

Cultivating  crop  eight  times  at  $3.50     .      .      .      .  28.00 

Spraying  six  times  ($1  per  acre  each  application)    .  60.00 

Hand  hoeing  and  pulling  weeds  once  (if  necessary)  .  15 .  00 
Digging  and  hauling  to  storehouse  or  station  at 

$15  per  acre 150.00 

Rent  of  land  (5%  on  $50  per  acre  value)  10  acres     .  25 .  00 
Depreciation    of    implements,     (plows,     harrows, 
planter,  sprayer,  digger,  etc.)   value  $250  esti- 
mated at  10  %       25.00 


$699 . 30 
Value  of  crop,  225  bushels  to  acre  (2,250  bushels  at 

50  cents) $125.00 

Value  per  acre 112.50 

Cost  of  growing  per  acre 69.93 


Net  profit  per  acre $  42 .  57 

The  E.  L.  Cleveland  Company  of  Houlton, 
Maine,  one  of  the  largest  growers  and  dealers  of 
seed  potatoes  in  America,  makes  the  following  es- 
timate of  the  cost  of  growing  an  acre  of  potatoes: 


146  THE  POTATO 

Commercial  fertilizer  1,500  lbs.  to  2,000  $28.50  to  $35.00 

Preparing  ground  for  seed     .      .      .      .  3 .  00 

Seed  600  pounds 7 .  00 

Planting 2.50 

Cultivation 3.50 

Gathering  or  harvesting 7.50 

Preparing  for  market 50 

Wear  and  tear  on  implements     ...  50 

Rent  of  land  (tenant  farmer  pays)   .      .  $10.00  to  $20.00 

Bordeaux  mixture 4 .  00 

Paris  green 50 

Hauling  to  market 3.50 

Average  yield  of  product  per  acre    .      .  220  bu. 

Average  value  of  product  per  acre  .      .  $88 .  00 

Average  size  of  fields 15  acres 

Average  value  per  acre  of  land  growing 

such  crops 75.00  to  100.00 

Profit  per  acre 17.00 

*'Much  depends  on  the  weather  conditions  as 
to  the  cost  of  applying  Bordeaux  mixture,  Paris 
green,  cost  of  cultivation,  labor  and  general  net 
results. 

"The  above  estimates  may  be  regarded  the  aver- 
age for  a  series  of  years." 

Mr.  L.  F.  Shanklin  of  Lompoc,  Cal.,  estimates 
the  cost  of  producing  an  acre  of  potatoes  as  fol- 
lows : 

Use  of  land  (will  rent  for) $30.00 

Seed  400  pounds  at  1 1  cents 6.00 

Plowing  and  preparation 5 .  00 

Cultivation  twice  —  hoeing  once 1 .  00 

Digging  and  picking 3 .  00 

Sacks  5  cents,  sacking  5  cents  (100  sacks  per  at)        .  10 .  00 

Hauling .  1.00 

$56.00 
His  average  crop  is: 


THE  POTATO  147 

70  sacks  firsts  115  lbs.  to  sack  at  $1.30  per  100.  $80.50 
30  "  seconds  120  lbs.  to  sack  at  $1 .  00  per  100 .  3G .  00 
30       "      cow  feed  or  waste  at  10  cents  per  100.      .       3.00 

$119.50 
Profit $63.50 

The  cost  of  producing  one  acre  of  potatoes  on 
the  farm  of  W.  Dennis  &  Sons,  Kirton,  Lincoln- 
shire, England,  is: 

Seed  per  acre  2,600  pounds $16.00 

Rent 15.00 

Rate  Tax  (special  Government  income  tax)  2 .  50 

Eight  tons  barnyard  manure         13.75 

Commercial  fertilizer  (phosphate  nitrate,  potash)  .  15 .  00 

Planting 1.25 

Cultivation 1 .  25 

Harvesting  and  marketing 15 .  00 

Plowing  and  preparation  after  planting  .                  .  1 .  20 

Ridging  and  covering  in 2 .  50 

Spraying 5.00 

Hauling 5.00 


^o 


Average  cost $  93 .  45 

Total  average  revenue $125.00 

Profit $  31.55 

W.  Dennis  &  Sons  grow  3,000  acres  annually 
and  these  figures  are  an  average  for  that  acreage. 

Prof.  L.  A.  Merrill  of  the  Utah  Agricultural  Col- 
lege reports  that  the  cost  of  growing  according  to 
Mr.  W.  F.  Hai-per  of  Smithficld,  Utah,  is  as  follows: 

Plowing,  harrowing  and  leveling  the  land           .      .  $5 .  00 

Fifteen  loads  of  manure  at  25  cents  per  load     .      .  3 .  75 

Hauling  manure  at  75  cents  per  load             .  11.25 

Seed 10.00 

Cutting  and  planting  seed 9 .  00 

Cultivating,  weeding  and  irrigating 5 .  00 

Picking  and  sacking 10.00 

Loading  on  car 4.50 

$  59.00 


148 


THE  POTATO 


To  this  should  be  added  interest  on  the  money 
invested  in  the  land  which  would  vary  with  the 
price  of  land,  and  also  taxes  on  the  land;  these  two 
items  will  probably  average  $10. 

The  profits  will  range  from  $20  in  the  poorer 
potato  sections  to  $125  per  acre  in  good  potato 
districts.  Mr.  Harper  reports  a  net  profit  of  the 
latter  sum  from  his  potatoes  in  1910. 

The  cost  of  producing  the  acre  of  potatoes  that 
won  the  first  prize  in  1910  Burley  Contest  (prize 
of  $500  cash  given  by  D.  E.  Burley,  General 
Passenger  Agent,  Oregon  Short  Line  Railroad,  for 
best  measured  acre  in  territory  tributary  to  that 
railroad)  is  estimated  by  L.  A.  and  W.  L.  Snyder, 
Twin  Falls,  Idaho,  the  growers,  as  follows: 


No.  of 
horses  used 


No.  of 
men 


Plowing  alfalfa  to  kill    the    plants 
(crowning     or     plowing     three 

inches  deep  with  sharp  plow). .  .  3 

Disking  in  spring 3 

Harrowing 2 

Corrugating 2 

Irrigating  before  plowing 0 

Plowing 4 

Planking 2 

Cultivating  first  time 2 

Cultivating  second  time 2 

Hilling  first  time 1 

Hilling  second  time 1 

Irrigating 0 

Digging 3 

Planting 2 


7 
2 


No.  of 
days 


3 

4 
1 

1 


1 
2 

1 

¥ 

1 

1 
3 

1 

2 
3 
1 
2 


This  makes  a  total  of  18  horse  days  —  or  about 
18  horses  working  1  day;  and  about  12  man  days. 
Estimating  the  horse  time  at  $1  a  day  and  the 
man  time  at  $2  a  day,  the  labor  bill  is: 


THE  POTATO  149 

Horse  work,  15  (lays  at  $1 $15.00 

Labor.  1^2  days  at  i^-^ 24.00 

Additional  charges  are  as  follows: 

Twiue 75 

Sacks  350  sacks  at  G|  cents  each 22.75 

Hauling 13.80 

1,750  ])oim(ls  of  seed  at  2  cents  per  pound   .            .  35.00 

Twelve  loads  of  manure  at  $1  i)cr  load                      .  12.00 
Rent  of  land  (0  i)er  cent,  on  valuation  of  $200  per 

acre) 12.00 


$125.30 


The  yield  was  as  follows : 

Gross  weight  ....      38,685  pounds       644 .  75  bushels 
Less  Culls       ....        4,150  pounds 


Marketable  .      .      .      34,535  pounds      575.5    bushels 

Estinialiiig  the  returns  from  tlie  crop  at  $1 
per  hundred,  or  60  cents  a  bushel,  the  market- 
able potatoes  are  worth  $345.35,  a  profit  of 
$220.05  without  figuring  the  waste  potatoes. 
With  waste  potatoes  at  $5  a  ton,  the  total  revenue 
is  $10.40  more,  or  $230.45. 

Ashel  Smith,  a  successful  grower  and  exhibitor 
of  potatoes  of  Ladner,  British  Cohimbia,  says 
that  he  pays  $25  an  acre  per  year  rent  for  land  in 
sod,  and  that  some  sod  land  would  be  worth  a 
rental  of  $50  for  growing  potatoes. 

When  land  that  has  been  in  sod  from  three  to 
ten  years  can  be  secured,  no  commercial  fertilizer 
is  used.  The  sod  is  thoroughly  disked  to  a  depth 
of  six  inches  (even  if  six  diskings  are  required)  be- 
fore plowing. 

Where  sprouted  whole  seed  is  used  the  earliness 
of  the  crop  is  increased  three  \veeks  as  compared 


150  THE  POTATO 

with  cut  seed.  They  are  planted  thirteen  inches 
apart  in  rows  thirty-six  inches  wide. 

Seed  stock  is  graded  by  numbers  according  to 
the  diameter.  For  instance,  No.  2  seed  weighs 
about  ten  ounces,  and  No.  7  is  about  one  inch  in 
diameter. 

The  per  acre  cost  of  production  is  about  as 
follows: 

Rent  of  land "     ....  $25.00 

1,400  pounds  of  seed 21.00 

Seed  bed  preparation 8 .  00 

No  spraying  is  required 

Cultivation  five  times 3 .  50 

Digging 14.40 

Sacks 14.40 

Storage 6.00 

$92.30 

The  yields  run  from  200  to  400  bushels,  with  an 
average  of  about  245  bushels  per  acre. 

Potatoes  usually  bring  about  $1  per  hundred  or 
60  cents  a  bushel. 

A  yield  of  9  tons  (18,000  pounds  or  300  bushels) 
at  $20  a  ton  ($1  per  hundred)  would  bring  $180. 

This  would  make: 

Returns  from  crop $180.00 

(  ost  of  producing 92 .  30 

Net  profit $  87.70 

In  the  Hastings  district  in  Florida,  F.  E.  Bugbee 
gives  the  following  cost  and  revenue  for  an  acre 
of  potatoes: 

"Where  the  common  methods  described  above 
are  used,  the  figures  are  about  as  follows: 


THE  POTATO  151 

Fertilizer $30.00 

Seed 14.00 

Barrels 12.00 

Rent 15 .  00 

Digging  and  delivering 10.00 

Cultivation 7.50 

$88.50 

Revenue  40  barrels  at  $3.25 $130.00 

Cost 88.50 

Profit $  31.50 

"Where  land  is  tiled  with  three-inch  tiles  eigh- 
teen inches  deep,  with  lines  of  tile  forty  feet  apart, 
with  a  device  for  closing  tiles  at  outlet  so  as  to 
control  moisture  content  of  land  greater  revenue 
is  made.     The  cost  of  tiling  is  $30  an  acre. 

*'0n  tiled  land  there  is  no  waste  from  open 
ditches  and  more  seed  and  fertilizer  are  required. 
More  seed  is  required  because  hills  are  planted 
closer  together. 

"Following  are  figures  on  tiled  land: 


Fertilizer $40.00 

Seed 25.00 

Barrels 30.00 

Rent 30.00 

Cultivation 7.50 

Digging 20.00 

$147.50 

Revenue  120  barrels  at  $3.25 $390.00 

Cost 147.50 

Profit $242.50 

The   cost   of   growing   an   acre   of   potatoes   in 
Kansas  is  given  by  Secretary  F.  I).  Coburii,  of  the 


152  THE  POTATO 

Kansas  State  Board  of  Agriculture,  in  a  consensus 
of  the  detailed  statements  of  forty  representative 
growers,  reporting  from  thirty-two  different  Kan- 
sas counties  the  crop  averaging  122  bushels: 

Average  cost  of  plowing $  1 .  20 

Harrowing , 54 

Seed 7.25 

Planting 1.35 

Cultivating 1 .  66 

Digging  and  marketing 8 .  85 

Wear  and  tear  of  tools  and  rental  of  land  or  interest 

on  its  value 4 .  42 

Total  cost  per  acre,  or  122  biLsheLs $25.27 

Averages  of  other  items,  gathered  from  those 
furnishing  the  forty  foregoing  reports,  are  as  fol- 
lows: 

Average  number  of  years  each  of  the  forty  reporters 

has  raised  potatoes  in  Kansas 18 

Average  number  of  acres  raised  by  each  annually     .  26 

Average  quantity  of  seed  planted  per  acre  (biLshels)  9 

Average  yield  per  acre  (bushels) 122 

Average  value  of  potato  land  per  acre       ....     $60 .  00 

Statements  of  ten  of  the  growers  reporting  who  are  most 
extensively  producing  potatoes  for  commercial  purposes,  in 
the  Kaw  Valley,  average  as  here  shown : 

Average  cost  of  plowing $  1 .  45 

Harrowing 51 

Seed 8.05 

Planting ,      .  65 

Cultivating 1.46 

Digging  and  marketing 11.00 

Wear  and  tear  of  tools  and  rental  of  land  or  inter- 
est on  its  value 6.85 

Total  cost  per  acre,  or  154  bushels  ....     $29 .  97 


THE  POTATO  153 

Range  of  price  per  husliel  $0.11  lo  $1.15  ])vr  hiishel. 
Average  price  per  bushel  Ivaw  Valley  on  board  cars 

is  about 37 

Average  number  of  years  each  of  these  ten  reporters 

has  raisc'd  potatoes  in  Kansas 18 

Average  number  of  acres  raised  by  each  annually      .  80 

Average  quantity  of  seed  planted  per  acre  (bushels)  10 . 4 

Average  yield  per  acre  (bushels) 153.7 

Average  value  of  potato  land  per  acre        ....   $105 .  00 

Incidentally,  by  these  forty  reports  it  is  noted 
that  the  number  of  times  the  ground  is  harrowed 
ranges  from  one  to  four  and  in  one  it  is  given  as 
eight;  in  some  cases  the  ground  is  disked  also; 
and  in  the  Kaw  Valley  it  is  not  uncommon  for 
some  of  the  more  extensive  growers  to  plow  their 
potato  ground  twice. 

Likewise,  in  the  more  western  counties,  in 
cases  where  the  crop  is  mulched  with  a  covering 
of  straw  or  hay  where  irrigated,  the  cost  of  cul- 
tivating, which  includes  these  items,  is  propor- 
tionately higher,  owing  to  extra  labor  in  the  first 
instance  and  more  frequent  cultivating  in  the 
second. 

In  the  item  of  planting,  the  cost  to  Kaw  Valley 
growers  is  lessened  by  the  quite  general  use  of  nui- 
chine  planters. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

MARKETS    AND    MARKETING 

FTTIHE  marketing  of  high-class  farm  products 

I  in  attractive  packages,  to  special  trade  — 
-^  is  a  department  of  agriculture  that  has  a 
most  promising  future. 

Farm  marketing  has  been  too  much  like  other 
farm  operations  —  slipshod  and  easy  going  —  with 
little  or  no  system.  There  has  been  too  little 
care  as  to  the  quality  of  the  product. 

The  demands  of  the  market  to  be  supplied 
should  be  the  first  consideration.  If  a  white  po- 
tato is  the  popular  one  —  the  best  possible  white 
potato  of  the  size  and  shape  desired  should  be 
grown  —  selecting  to  that  type  consistently  each 
year  —  making  a  product  that  so  much  excels  the 
bulk  of  the  offerings  that  it  always  demands  a 
premium.  An  instance  of  this  is  the  Salinas 
Burbank  on  the  Pacific  coast  and  the  Mt.  Sopris 
Farm  or  Carbondale  Peachblow  on  the  Denver 
market  and  for  the  dining  car  trade.  Both  of  these 
are  products  of  exceptional  quality,  smooth,  even, 
and  good  cookers,  but  the  former  is  a  long  white 
potato,  the  latter  round  and  red. 

In  the  fruit  trade,  where  selection  and  package 
have  been  given  careful  consideration  by  up-to- 
date  growers  in  the  western  part  of  the  United 
States,  the  marketing  of  all  grades  and  sizes  in 
the  same  package  is  no  longer  considered  good 
business.     The  best  and  most  select  are  packed  in 

154 


THE  POTATO  155 

separate  packages  and  often  under  separate  brands. 
During  the  70's,  potatoes  were  shipped  on  boats 
;uid  cars  in  bulk,  now  the  crop  is  handled  in  bags, 
boxes  and  barrels. 

It  pays  to  sort  the  crop  carefully  —  offering 
only  sound,  clean  tubers  for  human  consumption, 
feeding  all  refuse  to  stock.  Then  the  sound,  clean 
potatoes  should  be  sorted  as  to  size;  large,  medium 
and  small  for  different  requirements.  Potatoes 
of  uniform  size  cook  most  evenly.  Each  size 
should  be  put  up  in  clean,  new  packages.  Bar- 
rels and  sacks  are  acceptable  for  the  large  users  — 
hotels,  restaurants  and  dining  cars,  but  crates  or 
cartons  make  attractive  packages  for  the  retail 
trade.  It  may  not  be  good  business  on  the  part 
of  the  average  purchaser  of  supplies  for  the  house- 
hold, but  it  is  nevertheless  doubtless  true,  that  75 
per  cent,  of  the  potatoes  consumed  by  city  and 
toA\Ti  people,  pass  over  the  counter  of  the  retail 
grocer  in  small  lots.  For  such  trade,  five,  ten, 
and  fifteen  pound  cartons  would  be  very  attrac- 
tive. 

The  potato  for  this  high-class  trade  should  be 
packed  on  the  farm  a  short  time  only  before  being 
retailed,  and  go  in  an  original  sealed  package  to 
the  consumer.  There  would  be  no  bruising  and 
the  potato  could  go  to  the  table  free  from  dis- 
figurement. This  should  bring  the  grower  a  con- 
siderable premium  for  his  work. 

Quality  and  flavor  in  the  potato  receives  more 
attention  in  Europe  than  in  the  United  States. 
The  early  crop  can  be  lower  in  quality  than  any 
other  because  it  is  not  kept  so  long.  A  low  quality 
crop,  however,  causes  a  falling  off  in  consumption, 
as  in  1907.  On  the  other  hand,  an  increase  in 
(quality  greatly  increases  consumption  —  the  aver- 


156  THE  POTATO 

age  per  capita  demands  could  be  greatly  increased 
by  attention  to  this  detail. 

W.  C.  Brown  Presiident  of  the  New  York  Cen- 
tral Lines,  says  that  since  eating  scientifically  ir- 
rigation grown  potatoes  from  Mt.  Sopris  Farm, 
where  the  moisture  content  supply  is  controlled, 
his  family  eat  four  times  as  many  as  when  they  got 
the  ordinary  run  of  the  market.  The  same  report 
has  come  from  many  other  epicures. 

Ninety  per  cent,  of  the  potatoes  used  in  hotels, 
dining  cars  and  restaurants  are  pared.  Economy 
in  the  cost  of  producing  food  of  high  quality  for 
the  table  is  a  question  that  the  modern  chef  and 
manager  give  the  utmost  consideration.  For  this 
reason  his  ideal  potato  would  weigh  fourteen  to 
sixteen  ounces,  be  smooth  and  even  and  was  the 
smallest  possible  percentage  in  paring.  Of  course 
all  cannot  be  this  size,  but  the  smaller  ones  are 
used  for  baking.  The  ideal  potato  would  be  a 
little  smaller  than  the  hotel  man  likes  to  pare,  and 
would  weigh  twelve  ounces,  have  smooth,  clean 
skin,  shallow  eyes,  smooth  eyebrows  that  do  not 
protrude,  and  as  nearly  as  possible  the  shape  and 
size  of  a  turkey  egg.  Potatoes  that  weigh  eight  to 
sixteen  ounces  are  those  most  highly  valued  for 
the  best  trade. 

Several  years  ago,  at  the  beginning  of  his  dining 
car  trade,  the  senior  author  of  this  book  went  to 
Mr.  John  F.  Smart,  superintendent  of  dining  cars 
of  the  New  York  Central  Railroad,  with  a  sample 
of  the  smooth,  even  potatoes  Mt.  Sopris  Farm 
produces.  By  actual  demonstration  he  was  able 
to  show  that  these  potatoes  at  double  the  prevail- 
ing market  price,  would  make  a  saving  because  of 
their  evenness  and  smaller  percentage  of  waste  in 
paring  and  preparing  for  the  table.     At  least  20 


THE  POTATO  157 

per  cent,  of  the  total  wcigfit  of  ordinary  potatoes 
was  beini?  thrown  out  the  dining  car  windows  as 
waste.  This  consisted  of  small,  cut,  diseased  and 
rough  potatoes. 

The  business  of  growing  and  marketing  potatoes 
should  not  be  unlike  any  other  manufacturing 
enterprise,  both  the  producing  and  the  market- 
ing are  very  important.  A  modern  manufacturer 
would  not  think  of  sending  a  shipment  of  goods  to 
a  customer,  a  part  of  which  shipment  was  culls 
and  of  no  use  —  and  expect  to  hold  his  trade. 
Yet  the  potato  grower  will  sack  for  the  consumer 
10  to  25  per  cent,  of  absolutely  useless  potatoes  — 
cut,  diseased,  rotten  and  frozen  —  for  the  buyer 
to  pay  for  and  pay  freight  on  and  then  discard. 

At  one  time  the  farmer  or  grower  of  produce  of 
all  kinds  held  it  to  be  good  })usiness  to  deceive  the 
buyer.  The  best  berries  and  apples  were  put  on 
top  —  the  culls  beneath;  rocks  were  weighed  in 
loads  of  grain  and  bad  eggs  sold  for  fresh  ones. 
The  modern  apple  grower  of  the  Northwest,  mar- 
kets train-loads  of  fruit  of  uniform  quality,  the 
apple  in  the  centre  of  the  box  in  the  centre  of  a 
car  being  as  good  as  any  in  the  entire  shipment. 
This  practice  has  made  money.  Western  apples 
often  sell  for  more  per  one  bushel  box  than  East- 
ern apples  per  three  bushel  barrel.  One  reason 
for  this  is  that  the  barrel  is  often  faced  at  the  top 
and  bottom  with  good  fruit  and  has  the  bottom 
filled  with  comparativeh^  poor. 

The  average  potato  grower  has  not  yet  risen  to 
the  same  plane  as  the  best  fruit  men.  Putting 
good  ones  on  top  is  an  old  trick.  It  was  common 
practice  in  Colorado  a  short  time  ago  to  put  good 
potatoes  at  the  bottom  of  the  sack,  fill  the  centre 
with  the  poorest,  iind  put  good  ones  on  top.   This 


158  THE  POTATO 

was  to  fool  the  buyer  if  he  opened  the  bottom  in- 
stead of  the  top  of  the  sack.  The  broker  and 
dealer  got  around  this  by  slitting  the  side  of  sacks 
for  a  sample.  This  led  to  the  stovepipe  method 
of  filling.  A  few  good  potatoes  would  be  placed  in 
the  bottom  of  a  sack,  a  section  of  stove  pipe  in- 
serted and  the  culls  dropped  in  this,  surrounding 
the  pipe  by  good  potatoes,  withdrawing  the  pipe 
and  fining  the  top  with  extras.  Every  kind  of 
deception  in  marketing  is  poor  business  —  and 
must  sooner  or  later  be  stopped. 

In  some  districts  growers  have  formed  associ- 
ations and  potatoes  are  marketed  under  a  brand 
insuring  quality.  This  will  in  time  cause  potatoes 
carrying  this  brand  to  command  a  premium. 

Every  employer  of  labor  in  potato  work  will 
find  it  hard  to  get  men  to  be  careful  in  sorting, 
no  matter  how  strict  the  instructions.  This  was 
found  to  be  the  case  at  Mt.  Sopris  Farm,  where  a 
select  trade  has  been  built  up  by  marketing  po- 
tatoes on  the  same  basis  and  method  as  the 
apple  business  at  Hood  River  —  upon  honor. 
The  fact  that  there  has  never  been  a  complaint 
is  an  indication  of  how  well  the  plan  has  succeeded. 
"Do  not  put  a  potato  into  a  sack  for  market  that 
you  would  not  be  proud  to  serve  on  your  own 
table  "  —  this  is  the  instruction  to  the  employees 
in  the  potato  cellar  that  makes  it  most  easy  to 
accomplish  the  result. 

A  great  many  growers  make  a  practice  of 
planting  their  entire  acreage  to  the  same  class  of 
potatoes  and  marketing  all  at  one  time.  For 
instance,  it  may  be  all  Earlies,  or  second  Earlies, 
or  Later,  and  all  marketed  from  the  field  —  or  in 
the  case  of  the  late  crop,  all  held  for  the  winter  or 
spring  trade. 


THE  POTATO  159 

A  modification  of  this  policy  is  suggested.  This 
is  to  lengthen  the  planting,  harvesting  and  market- 
ing season  by  planting  some  acreage  to  an  early 
variety  or  varieties;  some  to  later  sorts  and  the 
balance  to  late  varieties.  This  makes  it  possible 
to  do  the  work  with  less  help  at  the  "rush"  time, 
keeping  the  fewer  extra  help  required  for  a  longer 
period.  It  makes  it  possible  to  market  a  portion 
of  the  crop  from  the  field,  saving  rehandling. 
Some  money  is  brought  in  early  to  pay  the  season's 
expenses.  By  reason  of  getting  a  part  of  the  crop 
out  of  the  way  and  off  the  farm  early,  the  propor- 
tionate loss  from  shrinkage  and  possible  loss  in 
the  storage  cellar  in  the  entire  crop  is  lessened, 
while  enough  of  the  crop  is  carried  over  to  get  the 
benefit  of  possible  high  prices  the  coming  spring. 
This  plan  has  been  adopted  at  Mt.  Sopris  Farm 
and  is  working  out  very  satisfactorily. 

The  potato  shrinks  its  greatest  percentage  dur- 
ing the  first  ten  days  after  digging  —  probably  10  to 
12  per  cent.  Potatoes  clipped  by  the  digger  are 
usable  at  digging,  while  if  put  in  the  cellar  they 
decay,  and  cause  decay  in  the  tubers  with  which 
they  come  in  contact. 

(xreater  economy  in  grading  is  possible  in  Amer- 
ica. The  common  market  requirement  is  to  dis- 
card as  culls,  all  potatoes  that  will  not  pass  over 
a  two-inch  screen  or  riddle.  In  some  places  those 
passing  through  the  screen  are  thrown  away,  not 
even  being  used  for  stock  food.  Some  of  these 
small  potatoes  are  perfectly  good  for  human  food 
and  should  be  put  up  in  packages  —  graded  to 
size  and  sold  at  a  discount.  They  are  quite  as  good 
as  any  for  making  soups  and  are  all  right  baked. 
They  can  be  easily  and  thoroughly  cleaned  with 
brushes.     They   do   not   require  paring   and   can 


160  THE  POTATO 

be  used  down  to  a  size  as  small  as  one  inch  in 
diameter.  Crops  often  run  from  10  to  33  per 
cent,  of  potatoes  under  two  inches  in  diameter, 
and  the  difference  between  profit  and  loss  is  con- 
tained in  this  part.  The  economy  of  the  world's 
food  supply  seems  to  demand  that  they  be  utilized. 

Potatoes  that  can  be  marketed  at  home,  with- 
out incurring  transportation,  middlemen  and 
retail  expense,  make  the  most  net  money  for  the 
grower.  Local  market  places  where  seller  and 
buyer  could  meet  would  be  a  benefit  to  both.  The 
net  price  at  the  farm  —  after  deducting  charges 
above  the  cost  of  growing  —  often  leaves  the  pro- 
ducer only  25  to  75  per  cent,  of  the  retail  price. 
When  a  potato  farm  is  a  long  distance  from  mar- 
ket or  railroad  shipping  point  and  the  roads  are 
bad,  the  wagon  haul  is  a  large  item  of  expense 
because  of  the  great  per  acre  weight  of  the  crop. 

Following  are  some  interesting  marketing  ideas 
from  ''Farmers'  Bulletin  386":  "Potato  Culture 
on  Irrigated  Farms  of  the  West,'*  by  E.  H.  Grubb, 
transmitted  December  30,  1909:  "In  deciding 
what  kind  of  potatoes  to  plant,  the  grower  should 
study  the  conditions  and  demands  of  the  market. 
He  should  grow  a  medium-sized  potato.  On 
rich  land  the  potatoes  planted  eight  inches  apart 
in  the  row  will  yield  not  only  a  great  tonnage,  but 
tubers  of  more  desirable  size.  There  are  few  mar- 
kets, except  in  the-  South,  that  will  pay  a  high 
price  for  large  potatoes.  Our  methods  of  packing 
and  marketing  potatoes  have  been  and  are  yet 
for  the  most  part,  more  crude  than  those  used 
with  other  products.  By  the  time  they  get  to  the 
consumer  they  are  more  or  less  bruised  or  crushed. 
The  writer  has  thought  of  crating  potatoes  and 
developing  that  idea  in  Denver  and  New  York. 


THE  POTATO  161 

At  the  present  time  he  favors  a  forty-pound  crate. 
This  size  may  be  increased  or  decreased  to  suit 
the  market.  The  grower  should  cater  to  the  de- 
mands of  the  most  particular  and  exacting  con- 
sumers. He  should  try  to  educate  the  public  to 
appreciate  the  delicacy  of  a  first-class  potato. 
The  grower  need  not  be  afraid  of  freight  bills  if 
he  can  furnish  better  potatoes  than  anybody  else. 
Hood  River  has  a  reputation  for  apples  that  makes 
them  cost  more  to  the  consumer  on  the  eastern 
market  than  the  eastern  apples  by  two  or  three 
times.  This  reputation  was  gained  by  packing 
apples  that  did  not  have  an  imperfect  specimen 
in  a  car.  Do  not  put  in  a  package  a  potato  that 
you  would  not  serve  to  a  guest  at  your  own  table." 

J.  G.  Milward  of  the  Horticultural  Depart- 
ment of  the  University  of  Wisconsin  is  doing  a 
great  work  for  the  potato  growers  of  that  state. 
In  a  circular  issued  by  him  in  May,  1911,  he  says: 

"  The  growing  of  miscellaneous  types  not  adapted 
to  competition  on  the  leading  markets,  causes 
difficulty  in  sorting  and  grading  at  the  loading 
stations.  Growers  in  several  sections  have 
responded  to  a  plan  to  establish  community 
centres  where  uniform  car  lots  of  one  variety  can 
be  handled.  An  important  step  toward  the  de- 
velopment of  this  plan  will  be  to  secure  the  best 
seed  raised  in  the  state  in  car  lots,  and  reserve  it 
for  Wisconsin  planting.  The  Agricultural  Ex- 
periment Station  through  its  Agricultural  Exten- 
sion Service  has  secured  hearty  endorsement, 
from  growers,  commission  men,  buyers,  of  a  prac- 
tical plan  to  disseminate  the  best  seed  raised  in 
Wisconsin  on   the  basis  of  a  community  centre 


162  THE  POTATO 

plan.  If  the  majority  of  growers  in  these  centres 
select  one  standard  variety  adapted  to  their  soil 
conditions  the  following  advantages  will  be  gained: 

1.  Reputation  on  the  market  as  a  variety  centre; 

2.  Possiblity  of  handling  straight,  uniform  car 
lots;  3.  Easier  disposal  of  stock  during  periods  of 
depressed  prices;  and  4.  Better  prices  under  close 
competition. 

"Many  sections  in  northern  Wisconsin  have 
become  important  commerical  potato  centres. 
Northern  fields  under  the  direction  of  this  Station 
are  being  j^lanted  largely  to  the  standard  varieties: 
Rural  New  Yorker,  Burbank,  Peerless,  Early 
Rose,  Early  Ohio  and  Triumph.  MarKet  stock 
of  a  high  standard  can  be  produced  on  the  good 
potato  soils  in  this  section.  Coarse,  undesir- 
able types  are  being  planted  too  often  on  land 
which  will  produce  standard  stock  of  high  grade. 
This  Station  has  been  in  touch  with  the  leading 
commission  houses  of  the  West,  and  all  these 
firms  complain  of  the  mixtures  and  substitutions 
of  type  in  Wisconsin  shipments.  In  addition  they 
emphasize  the  need  of  closer  attention  to  sorting 
and  grading. 

"During  the  past  ten  years  Wisconsin  has  ranged 
from  third  to  fifth  in  the  rank  of  states  in  potato 
production.  Available  records  show  that  there 
are  thousands  of  acres  of  developed  and  undevel- 
oped potato  soils  in  this  state  adapted  to  produce 
stock  of  as  high  quality  as  any  of  the  other  famous 
potato  centres  of  the  country.  Notwithstand- 
ing these  possibilities  for  development  there  has 
been  a  falling  off  in  many  sections  in  the  stand- 
ard of  both  seed  and  commercial  table  stock.  This 
circular  is  designed  to  urge  improvement  in  uni- 
formity  and   quality   of   car   shipments.     In   ac- 


THE  POTATO  1G3 

cordance  with  this  need  this  Station  does  not  as- 
sist in  the  dissemination  of  any  but  recognized 
standard  market  types.  In  some  of  the  northern 
counties  the  Burbank,  Rural  New  Yorker  or 
Triumph  j)redominate.  In  relation  to  market 
conditions  these  sections  have  recognized  the  ad- 
vantage of  a  community  industry.  The  potato 
industry  in  this  state  will  be  benefited  by  the  elim- 
ination of  coarse  imitative  types,  novelties  and 
local  varieties  and  a  return  to  straight  car  lots  of 
the  standard  varieties,  notably  Burbank,  Rural 
New  Yorker,  Peerless,  Early  Rose,  Early  Ohio  and 
Triumph." 

It  is  possible  that  many  do  not  realize  the  scope 
of  the  potato  business  in  a  single  market.  The 
following  interviews  with  the  senior  author  in  the 
Chicago  Tribune  in  December  1910,  is  very  in- 
teresting : 

"Chicago  as  a  market  is  next  to  New  York  in 
the  number  of  bushels  of  potatoes  consumed  and 
distributed.  A  vast  area,  comprising  among  others, 
the  states  of  Wisconsin,  Michigan,  Minnesota 
North  and  South  Dakota,  Colorado,  and  Idaho, 
ships  its  product  to  Chicago  to  be  marketed. 

"About  24,000  cars  of  potatoes  are  handled  in 
Chicago  annually,  making  an  average  of  a  little 
more  than  sixty  cars  daily.  INIany  of  these  pot  atoes 
are  consumed  within  the  city  and  the  rest  sup})lies 
vast  territories  where  the  growing  of  the  vegeta- 
ble is  practically  unknown. 

"As  in  all  products  of  the  farm,  the  crop  and 
cost  of  potatoes  is  dependent  largely  upon  the 
season.  This  year  the  price  of  potatoes  has  been 
high,  due  to  the  drought,  and  the  market  is  just 


164  THE  POTATO 

beginning  to  assume  a  normal  tone.  The  mar- 
ket price  determines  to  a  great  extent  whether  or 
not  potatoes  grown  in  states  near  Chicago  will  be 
shipped  here  for  marketing.  When  the  Chicago 
price  is  not  sufficient  to  allow  a  fair  return  for  the 
product  and  the  New  York  price  is  higher,  the 
shipper  does  not  hesitate  to  send  his  potatoes  to 
New  York.  And  the  same  is  true  of  potatoes 
grown  in  the  East. 

"But  the  United  States  nowhere  near  equals 
foreign  countries  in  the  growing  of  potatoes. 
There  are  three  or  four  times  as  many  potatoes 
grown  per  acre  in  Europe  as  in  this  country. 
Regular  shipments  of  European  potatoes  arrive  in 
New  York  and  occasionally  reach  the  Chicago  mar- 
ket. In  1908,  when  there  was  a  shortage  of  po- 
tatoes throughout  the  country  and  the  prices  were 
high,  a  large  proportion  of  potatoes  sold  in  the 
Chicago  and  Missouri  River  markets  were  grown 
in  Europe.  Potatoes  ordinarily  are  cheaper  in 
October  than  any  other  month.  October  is  the 
month  for  harvesting  the  great  crops  from  the 
Northern  States,  although  it  is  true  that  new 
potatoes  begin  to  arrive  as  early  as  September  1st. 
It  is,  however,  possible  to  secure  new  potatoes  in 
Chicago  the  year  round.  Bermuda  furnishes 
potatoes  in  January  and  February.  Florida 
furnishes  them  a  httle  later.  Potatoes  in  the 
spring  come  from  Texas,  and  following  northward, 
the  market  is  supplied  with  a  certain  number  of 
new  potatoes  in  all  seasons,  but  those  which  come 
from  the  Bermudas  and  Texas  command  fancy 
prices  and  go  only  on  the  tables  of  the  wealthy  or 
of  the  high-class  restaurants. 

"People  of  the  laboring  class  eat  more  potatoes 
than  those  in  other  walks  of  life,  and  potatoes  are 


THE  POTATO  1C5 

valued  especially  by  thorn  because  of  the  nutri- 
ment they  supply,  and  their  cheapness  as  com- 
pared with  other  food. 

"Fifty  cents  a  bushel  is  a  fair  price  for  the  large 
commission  men  who  handle  large  quantities  of 
potatoes  to  pay,  but  by  the  time  they  pass  througli 
the  hands  of  the  jobber  and  the  retailer  a  bushel  of 
potatoes  for  which  the  commission  man  paid  only 
50  cents  arrives  on  the  table  of  the  ultimate  con- 
sumer at  a  cost  of  80  or  85  cents  or  more  a  bushel." 

Potato  dealers  are  not  unlike  all  others  on  a  city 
market.  There  are  many  tricks  in  the  seed  trade. 
It  is  so  hard  for  the  amateur  or  the  old  practical 
dealer  or  grower  to  tell  the  difference  in  varieties, 
and  there  are  so  many  so  similar  that  a  buyer  can 
almost  always  be  accommodated,  no  matter  w4iat 
stock  is  on  hand.  Instances  are  common  where 
a  half  dozen  different  varieties  have  been  supplied 
to  as  many  different  customers  from  a  single  ship- 
ment of  a  single  variety.  In  the  early  spring  it  is 
common  to  see  small  old  potatoes  washed  and 
sold  for  new  potatoes  at  fancy  prices. 

It  is  probably  true  that  the  American  or  Euro- 
pean potato  grower  will  find  his  greatest  future  mar- 
ket in  the  increase  in  population  at  home,  yet 
there  are  sections  both  in  the  Arctic  and  Tropical 
zones,  where  the  Irish  potato  does  not  grow,  that 
can  be  exploited  for  special  long  keeping  and 
generally  heavy  skinned  varieties  at  high  prices. 
Some  of  these  are  Alaska,  Gulf  States,  Old  ^Mexico, 
Panama,  Orient,  and  Philippines.  There  seems  to 
be  a  good  future  in  the  preparation  of  dried  or 
desiccated  potatoes  for  this  trade. 

The  potato  market  is  very  uncertain,  the  grower 
reaping  a  handsome  profit  one  year,  a  loss  the  next. 


166  THE  POTATO 

No  one  seems  to  be  able  to  forecast  or  guess  the 
future  —  even  one  season  ahead.  The  "  mtermit- 
tent"  potato  grower  may  make  big  money  or  go 
broke,  but  the  one  who  grows  a  stated  acreage 
every  year  for  ten  years  makes  a  nice  average  an- 
nual profit. 

As  is  true  of  all  crops  that  make  food  for  the 
human  race,  the  ultimate  future  of  the  potato 
crop  for  the  intelligent  grower  is  certainly  very 
bright.  No  market  is  so  panicky  and  so  subject 
to  rise  and  fall  in  price.  This  is  true  in  both 
Europe  and  America.  This  is  one  of  the  phases 
of  the  business  that  should  make  the  grower  alert 
and  watchful  of  crop  and  market  conditions.  It 
requires  more  than  ordinary  judgment  to  know 
when  to  hold  or  sell. 

There  are  several  ways  of  loading  potato  cars 
for  shipment  in  cold  weather  to  prevent  freezing. 
At  Carbondale  a  foot  of  straw  is  put  on  the  bottom 
of  the  refrigerator  car  and  a  foot  around  the  sides 
as  the  potatoes  in  bags  are  laid  in  tiers.  After 
the  car  is  fully  loaded,  oil  stoves  are  put  in,  the 
temperature  raised  to  80  degrees,  the  stoves  re- 
moved and  the  cars  tightly  sealed.  This  generally 
insures  the  car  going  through  in  good  shape. 

In  Maine,  a  false  bottom  and  false  sides  are  made 
in  the  refrigerator  car,  leaving  a  two-inch  air 
space  all  around.  This  frame  is  covered  with 
building  paper.  The  air  space  serves  the  same 
purpose  as  the  straw.  About  300  sacks  of  a  little 
over  100  pounds  each  —  or  about  30,000  pounds 
is  the  weight  usually  loaded  per  car,  although 
double  this  tonnage  is  sometimes  loaded. 


CHAPTER  XV 

ENEMIES   OF   THE   POTATO 

THE  potato  is  less  subject  to  diseases  and 
pests  in  the  higher  mountain  country 
where  it  grows  wild,  than  in  any  other  part 
of  the  world. 

Thousands  of  tons  of  tubers  —  the  bulk  of  the 
crop  of  the  world,  in  fact  —  are  produced  where 
the  grower  must  fight  many  kinds  of  fungous  and 
insect  enemies. 

The  large  amount  of  work  being  done  along  the 
line  of  securing  disease  resistant  varieties  —  either 
by  selection  or  hybridizing  —  has  resulted  in  the 
production  of  some  varieties  of  market  value  for 
the  disease  infested  regions,  and  doubtless  more 
will  be  produced. 

The  enemies  of  the  potato  may  be  divided  into 
two  classes;  diseases  and  insects. 

The  diseases  include: 
Blights, 
Scab, 

Rot  of  various  kinds, 
Black  leg, 
Black  scab  or  European  wart  disease. 

Among  the  insect  enemies  are: 
Flea  beetles, 
Colorado  potato  beetle, 
Potato  bug, 

167 


168  THE  POTATO 

Potato  worm, 
Potato  stalk  weevil, 
Potato  eelworm. 

One  of  the  diseases  of  the  potato  that  is  attract- 
ing much  attention  abroad  is  the  wart  disease  — 
and  steps  have  been  taken  to  prevent  its  intro- 
duction into  America.  Following  a  discussion  of 
this,  the  various  blight,  scab  and  rot  diseases  are 
described. 

WART   DISEASE 

In  "Leaflet  105"  of  the  Board  of  Agriculture  and 
Fisheries  of  the  British  Government,  (information 
and  illustrations  from  this  source  are  used  by  per- 
mission of  the  Controller  of  His  Britannic  Majesty's 
Stationery  Office),  this  disease  is  described  as  fol- 
lows : 

"The  disease  known  as  Wart  Disease  (Syncny- 
trium  endobioticum  Percival),  formerly  known  as 
Chrysophlyctis  endobiotica,  Cauliflower  Disease, 
Canker,  'Fungus '  or  Black  Scab,  attacks  the  tubers 
and  haulms  of  potatoes,  giving  rise  to  large  and 
irregular  outgrowths  which  suggest  a  resemblance 
to  pieces  of  cauliflower.  In  bad  cases  these  '  warts ' 
may  appear  at  the  surface  of  the  soil  and  can  be 
detected  at  the  base  of  the  haulm  as  yellowish 
green  masses. 

"Warts  or  wrinkles  appear  at  first  in  the  eyes  of 
the  young  tuber,  and  later  several  warts  by  grow- 
ing together  form  a  brown  spongy  scab,  which 
finally  rots  and  becomes  black.  This  scab  has  no 
connection  with  ordinary  potato  scab  and  does  not 
resemble  it  in  appearance,  but  as   both   are  fre- 


THE  POTATO  109 

quently  found  on  the  same  plant  they  are  some- 
times confused. 

"The  disease  has  caused  most  damage  in  gar- 
dens or  allotments  where  potatoes  are  grown  every 
year,  but  in  a  few  cases  there  has  also  been  serious 
loss  in  potatoes  grown  on  farms  worked  on  a  four- 
course  rotation. 

"The  occurrence  of  the  wart  disease  in  the 
affected  districts  is  similar  to  that  of  the  Finger- 
and-toe  disease  which,  on  certain  soils  and  in  some 
seasons,  causes  serious  damage  to  turnips.  Al- 
though in  the  first  instance  only  a  few  plants  may 
show  the  wart  disease,  it  is  almost  sure  to  spread, 
and  the  disease  nuist  be  treated  as  a  dangerous 
enemy,  which,  if  neglected,  may  entirely  prevent 
the  profitable  culture  of  potatoes  where  it  occurs. 
Land  may  be  inifit  for  potato  growing  for  as  long 
as  six  years  after  infection,  and  possibly  for  a  much 
longer  period. 

"The  diseased  tubers  or  haulms  contain  number- 
less 'spores'  (the  'seeds'  of  the  disease),  which  are 
not  only  capable  of  infecting  healthy  potatoes  the 
following  season,  but  appear  to  be  able  to  lie  dor- 
mant in  the  soil  for  several  years. 

"The  diseased  tuber  is  the  usual  source  of  infec- 
tion and  tlie  spread  of  the  disease  from  one  hold- 
ing to  another  is  mainly  to  be  attributed  to  the 
planting  of  infected  sets. 

"When  disease  appears  it  may,  if  neglected, 
spread  over  a  farm  and  render  the  soil  useless  for 
potato  growing  in  the  course  of  a  few  years.  It  is 
spread  by  manure,  by  the  decay  of  affected  haulms, 
tubers  and  runners  in  the  soil,  and  it  may  even  be 
carried  from  one  field  to  another  on  implements  and 
boots. 

"Diseased  potatoes  must  always  be  well  boiled 


170  THE  POTATO 

before  being  given  to  cattle  or  pigs,  for  Infection 
is  very  readily  spread  by  manure  if  raw  diseased 
tubers  are  fed  to  stock.  For  the  same  reason 
diseased  haulms  must  be  burned  and  never  be 
thrown  on  the  manure  heap;  this  should  be  done 
as  soon  as  possible  after  the  crop  is  hfted,  as  the 
'warts'  rot  very  quickly  and  further  contaminate 
the  soil.  Dung  which  has  been  contaminated  in 
any  way  should  not  be  used  for  potato  growing. 
If  practicable,  it  should  be  applied  to  land  under 
permanent  grass. 

"*Seed'  potatoes  from  a  diseased  crop  or  from  a 
field  in  which  disease  is  kno^\^l  to  have  occurred 
within  six  years  should  be  avoided.  If  'seed' 
potatoes  are  purchased  in  a  district  in  which  the 
disease  is  common,  they  should  be  bought  as  soon 
after  harvest  as  possible,  so  that  they  may  be  kept 
under  observation;  the  sets  should  be  freely 
sprinkled  with  sulphur  (four  to  five  pounds  will 
dress  a  ton)  and  should  then  be  stored  in  boxes  or 
pits  until  required. 

"Tubers  only  slightly  diseased  may  be  easily 
overlooked,  and  may  cause  widespread  infection 
when  planted.  Potatoes  from  an  infected  crop 
may  appear  to  be  perfectly  sound  when  lifted,  but 
after  storing  they  may  develop  warts.  It  is  im- 
portant, therefore,  that  seed  should  be  carefully 
examined  before  planting.  As  minute  warts  are 
difficult  to  see,  a  grower  would  be  well  advised  to 
reject  any  seed  potatoes  among  which  diseased 
tubers  have  been  found. 

"In  the  case  of  a  disease,  like  wart  disease,  which 
infects  the  land  gradually,  it  is  necessary  to  detect 
and  stamp  out  the  fungus  as  soon  after  infection 
as  possible.  When  discovered  the  entire  plant 
affected  should  be  carefully  removed,  the  useless 


THE  POTATO  171 

portions  burned,  and  the  tubers  boiled  without 
delay.  If  possible  the  surrounding  soil  should  also 
be  removed  and  burned,  or  at  least  heavily  dressed 
with  gas-lime.  Further,  when  the  field  is  next 
planted  with  potatoes  the  piece  of  ground  where 
the  disease  appeared  should  be  fallowed  and 
dressed  with  gas-lime  at  the  rate  of  four  to  five  tons 
per  acre. 

"If  the  attack  has  occurred  in  a  garden  required 
for  frequent  potato  growing,  the  occupier  should 
dig  out  and  burn,  not  only  the  affected  plant,  but 
a  considerable  quantity  of  the  surrounding  soil  so 
as  to  ensure  that  every  fragment  of  the  diseased 
plant  is  destroyed.  Gas-lime  should  then  be  ap- 
plied to  the  soil. 

"If  fields  worked  on  the  four-course  rotation 
have  become  generally  infected,  farmers  should 
replace  the  potato  by  some  other  crop,  so  as 
to  let  eight  years  intervene  before  the  next 
potato  crop  is  planted.  The  sets  should  be  dusted 
with  sulphur  before  planting,  as  recommended 
above. 

"In  gardens  and  allotments  in  which  the  disease 
has  appeared,  potatoes  should  on  no  account  be 
planted  on  the  same  piece  of  land  next  season,  and 
one  of  the  following  methods  of  treatment  may  be 
adopted: 

"(a)  The  ground  toward  the  end  of  April, 
should  be  covered  with  gas-lime  (two  pounds  to  the 
square  yard),  which  may  be  forked  into  the  surface 
soil  to  a  depth  of  three  inches.  After  lying  fallow 
until  the  end  of  June  it  should  be  dug  and  prepared 
for  cabbages. 

"  (b)  If  the  soil  be  deep,  two  pounds  of  gas- 
lime  per  square  yard  may  be  applied  at  the  end  of 
March,  and  a  month  later  the  soil  should  be  in- 


172  THE  POTATO 

verted  by  deep  trenching.  Any  crop  except  pota- 
toes may  be  grown. 

"Whichever  of  these  methods  may  be  adopted 
it  is  desirable,  when  potatoes  are  next  planted  in 
the  garden,  that  the  sets  should  be  dusted  over 
with  sulphur,  and  as  they  lie  in  the  drills  should  be 
freely  sprinkled  with  sulphur  before  they  are  cov- 
ered in.  Before  the  potatoes  are  earthed  up,  the 
surface  of  the  soil  round  the  haulms  should  be 
sprinkled  with  sulphur. 

"Gardens  in  which  even  a  single  diseased  potato 
has  been  found,  the  course  recommended  in  the 
foregoing  paragraphs  should  be  adopted;  but  if  no 
other  land  for  growing  potatoes  is  procurable,  and 
occupiers  of  gardens  and  allotments  are  obliged  to 
grow  potatoes  on  land  on  which  disease  has  been 
seen,  they  should  apply  gas-lime  in  autumn  or 
early  winter  at  the  rate  of  three  pounds  to  the 
square  yard.  After  the  sets  have  been  placed 
in  the  drills  they  should  be  freely  sprinkled  with 
sulphur.  Before  the  plants  are  *  earthed  up'  the 
ground  should  again  be  sprinkled  with  sulphur. 

"Some  varieties  of  potatoes  are  not  affected  by 
wart  disease,  or  are  very  slightly  affected.  The 
varieties  known  as '  Snowdrop, ' '  Conquest, ' '  Abun- 
dance,' '  Langworthy , '  *  What's  Wanted,'  and 
'Golden  Wonder,'  have  escaped  infection,  when 
such  other  sorts  as  'Up-to-date,'  'Northern  Star,' 
'British  Queen,'  'Royal  Kidney,'  'King  Edward 
VII.,'  'Epicure,'  'Ex-press,'  'Ninety-fold,'  and 
'May  Queen,'  planted  in  the  same  soil  have  been 
severely  attacked.  Early  potatoes  often  escape 
attack  the  first  two  or  three  years,  i.  e.,  until  the 
soil  gets  badly  infected. 

"If  an  early  potato  be  required  'Snowdrop'  or 
*  Conquest'  should  be  planted;  if  a  late  variety, 


w 


f  \:  '     ^  ,  " 


WATIT  DISK ASE  OF  POTATOES 
Upper  leil-haiul  fij;uro  shows  allVctod  stem.      Ippci   riirlit- 
haiid   fijiure   shows    tuhcr   sli-^lilly    attacked.      Lower   liirurc 
sliow's   tuhor   hadly  allackcil.      llhislralioii   iroiii   circular  of 
British  Hoard  of  Atxricull  iir<'  and  Fisheries 


irly  Blight.     Characteristic  appear- 
ance of  badly  bUghted  leaf 


Potato  Scab.     From  Farmers'  Bulletin 
91,  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture 


THE  POTATO  173 

preference  should  be  given  to  'Langworthy.* 
This  variety  is  commonly  cultivated  in  the  potato- 
growing  districts  of  the  east  of  Scotland,  and  relia- 
ble seed  is  easily  procurable.  It  does  not  yield  so 
heavily  as  'Up-to-date,' but  is  less  liable  to  ordi- 
nary potato  disease,  and  the  cooking  quahty  is 
much  better,  so  that  even  in  districts  where  wart 
disease  has  not  appeared  it  is  a  variety  to  be 
recommended.  It  requires  rather  a  long  period  of 
growth,  well-tilled  soil,  and  a  free  use  of  manure. 
Those  who  wish  to  grow  it  successfully  should  give 
attention  to  the  following  points: 

"(1)  Cultivate  the  land  deeply:  shallow  soils 
should  be  subsoiled,  or  in  the  case  of  gardens, 
trenched  to  a  depth  of  fifteen  inches. 

*'  (2)  Apply  dung  liberally.  In  the  case  of 
fields,  fifteen  to  twenty  tons  per  acre,  and  supple- 
ment this  dressing  with  a  mixed  artificial  manure. 

"(3)  Sprout  the  tubers  before  planting,  and 
plant  early. 

"Sulphur  suitable  for  the  purposes  indicated 
above  should  be  procurable  at  from  9s.  ($2.25),  to 
lis.  ($2.75),  per  cwt.,  or  Is.  3d  (31  cents),  to  Is. 
6d.  (37  cents),  per  stone  (fourteen  pounds).  Sul- 
phur has  been  recommended  because,  of  many 
remedies  tried  for  dressing  soil  during  the  growing 
season,  it  seems  to  be  the  best.  It  occasionally 
does  good,  especially  in  light  soils,  but  it  cannot  be 
relied  upon  to  protect  potatoes  planted  in  badly 
affected  soils.  Its  good  effect  seems  to  be  en- 
hanced by  using  black  sulphur  and  mixing  it  with 
an  equal  quantity  of  quicklime. 

"Wart  Disease  (Synchytrium  endobioticum),  is 
scheduled  as  a  notifiable  disease  under  the  Destruc- 
tive Insects  and  Pests  Acts,  1877  and  1907,  and 
occupiers  of  land  on  which  the  disease  occurs  must 


174  THE  POTATO 

at  once  report  it  to  the  Secretary,  Board  of  Agri- 
culture and  Fisheries,  4  Whitehall  Place,  London, 
S.  W.  In  reporting  an  outbreak,  occupiers  must 
state  their  names  in  full  and  their  postal  address, 
and  it  is  desirable  that  specimens  for  identification 
should  be  sent  to  the  Board.  Neglect  to  report 
renders  the  owner  liable  to  a  penalty  not  exceeding 
ten  pounds  ($50)." 

EARLY   BLIGHT 

Potato  Leaf  Blight  (Alternaria  Solani).  The 
following  description  is  from  '  'Bulletin  No.  71 "  of 
the  Wyoming  Agricultural  Experiment  Station: 

"This  disease  has  probably  been  long  in  exist- 
ence. Our  knowledge  of  it,  however,  is  exceed- 
ingly recent.  So  long  as  the  real  nature  of  potato 
diseases  were  not  understood,  the  different  kinds 
of  such  diseases  were  not  discriminated.  They 
were  all  classed  under  one  name,  if  named  at  all. 
Our  first  definite  knowledge  of  the  early  blight  was 
worked  out  in  this  country  in  the  early  '90's,  though 
references  to  it  occur  somewhat  earlier  in  the 
nineteenth  century  in  European  hteracure.  It 
had  been  overlooked  or  confounded  with  the  late 
blight,  but  it  is  now  fully  understood  that  the 
parasitic  organism  causing  it  is  wholly  different 
from  the  one  causing  the  late  bhght  in  structure, 
in  method  and  time  of  development,  as  well  as  the 
conditions  under  which  it  occurs. 

"The  fungus,  like  most  other  plant  parasites, 
lives  within  the  tissues  of  the  host,  spreading  its 
mycelium  through  the  intercellular  spaces  of  the 
leaf.  It  consists  of  slender  threads  (hyphse),  more 
or  less  branched,  which  tend  to  become  aggregated 


THE  POTATO  175 

in  certain  areas,  the  tissues  of  which  die,  producing 
the  characteristic  brown  spots.  While  in  full 
growth  and  while  the  tissues  of  the  host  are  supply- 
ing an  abundance  of  food,  there  are  few,  if  any, 
reproductive  bodies  (spores)  produced.  When  the 
leaves  become  partially  exhausted  and  dry,  spore 
reproduction  takes  place  freely  and  the  character- 
istic several-celled  spores,  formed  in  chains,  occur 
abundantly. 

"Since  the  early  blight  has  only  recently 
attracted  attention  in  this  state,  it  is  not  generally 
known  to  our  growers.  It  may,  however,  be 
readily  recognized  and  easily  distinguished  from 
the  late  blight  and  the  other  potato  diseases. 
Early  blight  begins  to  show  itself  about  the  time 
that  the  blossoms  appear,  which,  with  us,  is  usually 
in  July.  More  rarely  it  attacks  plants  scarcely  six 
inches  high.  The  first  indications  are  relatively 
small  grayish  brown  spots,  which,  as  they  become 
larger,  are  marked  with  faint  concentric  circles, 
giving  a  target-like  appearance  to  them.  The 
spots  may  increase  in  size  until  several  of  them 
run  together  and  form  large  patches  of  dead  tissue. 
In  the  course  of  a  few  days  these  spots  become 
brown  and  withered,  while  the  rest  of  the  leaf 
takes  on  a  yellowish,  sickly  color,  though  the 
stems  may  remain  green.  Sometimes  the  disease 
progresses  quite  slowly  and  the  vitality  of  the 
plant  is  only  gradually  reduced.  In  any  case, 
however,  the  tubers  either  stop  growing  entirely 
or  remain  so  small  as  to  make  them  of  little 
value.  The  death  of  the  vines  in  this  way  is 
often  mistaken  for  early  ripening  and  it  then 
occasions  a  surprise  to  find  that  no  tubers  of  value 
are  present. 

"Any  injury  to  the  foliage,  such  as  insect  bites 


176  THE  POTATO 

or  bruises  from  hail,  seems  to  furnish  the  condi- 
tion for  the  entrance  of  the  fungus  into  the  leaf. 
Likewise  any  decline  in  the  vigor  of  the  plant 
seems  to  invite  attack.  Drought,  poor  soil,  de- 
layed development  due  to  cold  weather,  exces- 
sive heat  tending  toward  wilting  or  sun-scald,  all 
make  the  plants  less  able  to  withstand  the  at- 
tacks of  this  blight.  In  other  words,  the  more 
nearly  perfect  the  plant  and  the  more  vigorous  its 
growth  the  less  likely  it  is  to  suffer  from  this  para- 
site. 

"But  little  is  known  concerning  the  source  of  the 
disease.  The  tubers  seem  to  be  wholly  free  from 
attack,  and  there  is  therefore  no  reason  for  sus- 
pecting that  the  seed  potatoes  carry  the  disease 
over  from  one  year  to  the  next.  Certain  it  is 
that  somewhere  the  several-celled  black  spores 
winter  over  and  start  the  disease  again  the  fol- 
lowing season.  That  this  might  happen  where 
the  dead  tops  are  not  destroyed,  but  are  scattered 
about  over  the  field  and  farm,  is  easily  under- 
stood. 

"Satisfactory  treatment  for  this  disease  has  not 
yet  been  found.  Many  experiments,  however, 
have  shown  that  the  effects  of  the  disease  may  be 
greatly  reduced  by  two  or  three  thorough  sprayings 
with  Bordeaux  mixture.  The  spraying  must  be 
thoroughly  done  and  the  first  application  must  be 
made  previous  to  the  appearance  of  the  blight. 
After  the  leaves  have  become  filled  with  the  my- 
celium and  the  spots  are  beginning  to  show,  it 
is  too  late.  Prevention  must  be  the  aim,  and 
this  is  accomplished  by  putting  the  leaves  in 
such  a  condition  by  the  apphcation  of  the  Bor- 
deaux that  the  spores  cannot  germinate  upon  the 
leaf  surface." 


THE  rOTATO  177 

THE    LATE    BLIGHT 

The  Late  Blight  (Phytophthora  infestans)  is  a 
\'ery  serious  disease.  The  following  is  from  "Bul- 
letin 71"  of  the  Wyoming  Experiment  Station: 

"Though  this  disease  had  not  been  fully  worked 
out  until  in  comparatively  recent  times,  yet  there 
are  references  in  literature  to  potato  epidemics 
which  devastated  the  fields  of  Europe  at  intervals 
during  the  nineteenth  century,  which  were  undoubt- 
edly due  to  it.  The  first  recognizable  description 
occurs  first  in  18-45.  Its  life  history,  however,  has 
now  been  known  for  some  time,  though  as  late  as 
the  '80's  and  '90's  this  trouble  was  still  confused 
with  the  early  blight.  For  a  considerable  time  it 
was  not  known  that  the  rot  which  usually  follows 
an  attack  is  also  due  to  the  same  parasite.  While 
probably  of  rare  occurrence  in  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tain states,  late  blight  is  feared  more  than  any 
other  disease  in  the  potato  districts  of  the  Eastern 
States.  It  is  estimated  that  the  loss  in  New  York 
alone  sometimes  amounts  to  $10,000,000  a  year. 

"Though  this  fungus  resembles  the  early  blight 
in  many  respects,  yet  it  is  easily  distinguished 
from  it  by  its  mode  of  growth,  the  effect  it  pro- 
duces on  the  leaf  tissues,  and  especially  by  the 
spores  and  the  way  in  which  they  are  produced. 
It  finds  entrance  into  the  potato  leaf  through  the 
stomata,  and  the  mycelium  once  having  found 
entrance  spreads  by  numerous  branching  liyi)hae 
through  the  leaf  among  its  cells,  from  which  the 
fungus  draws  its  nourishment.  After  the  leaf 
has  become  filled,  as  it  were,  with  the  mycelium, 
the  fruiting  period  of  the  fungus  is  reached.  Sonu- 
of  the  hyphse  then  grow  out  through  the  stomal  a, 


178  THE  POTATO 

branch,  and  produce  small  pear-shaped  bodies  on 
the  tips  of  the  branches.  These  latter  structures, 
known  as  sporangia,  serve  to  spread  the  disease 
to  other  parts  of  the  field.  They  are  very  readily 
detached  from  the  filament  upon  which  they  are 
grown  and  then  fall  upon  the  soil,  or  are  carried 
far  by  the  wind.  If  they  happen  to  fall  upon  a 
potato  leaf  they  will  begin  to  grow  just  as  soon  as 
a  little  moisture  either  from  rain  or  dew  is  present. 
This  growth  consists  either  in  the  formation  and 
discharge  upon  the  surface  of  the  leaf  of  several 
free  swimming  spores,  capable  of  infecting  the 
plant,  or  in  the  direct  formation  of  a  filament 
which  enters  the  leaf  through  a  stoma  and  develops 
again  a  mycelium.  From  this  mycehum  other 
similar  reproductive  bodies  are  formed,  in  turn,  to 
further  infect  the  field. 

*'  During  the  time  that  the  fungus  is  spreading  its 
mycelium  through  the  tissues  of  the  leaf  there  is 
little  to  indicate  its  presence.  When  the  fruiting 
stage  is  reached  it  soon  becomes  evident  enough  by 
the  formation  of  brown  spots,  which  grow  grad- 
ually larger  and  larger,  finally  turning  black  and  a 
little  later  decomposing  and  emitting  a  disagreeable 
but  characteristic  odor.  If  one  of  these  infested 
areas  be  examined  closely  it  will  be  found  to  be 
bordered  by  a  grayish  white  mildew.  This  latter, 
under  examination  with  a  lens,  is  seen  to  be  the 
branched  fruiting  hyphse  bearing  the  sporangia 
described  in  the  preceding  paragraph. 

*'  For  the  development  of  the  mycelium — that  is, 
for  the  growth  of  the  fungus  within  the  potato 
plant — moderately  cool  weather  seems  the  most 
favorable.  For  this  reason  this  disease  rarely 
proves  troublesome  where  high  temperatures  pre- 
vail for  considerable  periods  of  time.     Spore  pro- 


Laic  IJligliL     DisoMscd  leal'  and  tuber  of  j)()tat(>.     From  Iho  Journal 
of  the  British  Board  of  Agric-ullurc  and  Fislicrics 


Late  Blight.  The  last  stages  of  the  disease.  When  this 
is  reached  the  field  looks  as  if  fire  had  swept  over  it.  (From 
the  New  York  Experiment  Station,  Geneva,  Bulletin  '•241). 


THE  POTATO  17;) 

duction,  however,  seems  to  be  Iiastened  and 
enormously  increased  when  a  few  days  of  warm, 
cloudy  and  muggy  weather  alternate  witli  llie 
longer,  cooler  periods.  Under  such  conditions  a 
field  showing  but  slight  infection  may  in  a  few 
days  look  as  if  it  had  been  swept  by  fire  or  frost. 
It  rarely  attacks  early  potatoes,  mostly  appearing 
upon  the  late  varieties  durmg  the  tuber-forming 
period. 

"Various  experiment  station  workers  have  tried 
different  remedies  for  holding  this  disease  in  check. 
At  some  stations  these  experiments  have  been 
carried  on  for  many  years.  While  several  have 
given  results  Avliich  were  of  value,  no  treatment 
has  been  as  uniformly  successful  as  the  application 
of  Bordeaux  mixture.  The  universal  experience 
is  that  spraying  with  this  fluid  will  so  nearly  con- 
trol the  late  blight  as  to  make  it  possible  to  secure 
a  crop  even  in  those  years  when  this  disease  is 
most  prevalent.  It  requires,  however,  that  the 
spraying  should  be  begun  in  time  and  continued 
at  intervals  throughout  the  growing  season.  As 
already  stated,  it  must  be  a  precautionary  measure. 
If  not  begun  until  after  the  blight  is  evident  in  the 
field  only  partial  control  can  be  expected.  If  the 
spray  is  applied  thoroughly  from  the  begiiniing, 
not  only  will  the  blight  be  controlled,  but  the  rot 
of  the  crop  which  usually  follows  a  severe  attack  is 
altogether  prevented. 

"  It  has  been  almost  conclusively  proved  that  the 
rot  of  the  tuber  which  follows  an  attack  of  late 
blight  is  reallv  due  to  the  infection  of  the  tul)er  bv 
the  spores  which  have  fallen  upon  the  soil  and 
which,  in  the  course  of  the  season,  are  earried  by 
rains  or  irrigation  waters  into  contact  willi  the 
tuber  itself.     Here  it  may  begin  growth  at  once  or 


180  THE  POTATO 

it  may  develop  after  the  potato  has  been  dug  and 
stored.  Sometimes  a  large  portion  of  the  crop 
is  thus  lost  even  after  it  has  been  harvested. 
Thorough  spraying  of  the  vines  will,  at  the  same 
time,  impregnate  the  surface  of  the  soil  with  the 
copper-sulphate  solution.  Thus  not  only  is  the 
formation  of  any  considerable  number  of  spores 
prevented,  but  the  spores  that  do  happen  to  reach 
the  soil  are  destroyed. 

"It  is  believed  that  the  spores  of  the  fungus  do 
not  live  through  the  winter.  If  that  be  true  the 
mycelium  of  the  fungus  must  either  live  over  in 
the  dead  tops  that  are  left  strewn  about  the  field, 
or  else  the  tubers  carry  the  disease  over  from  one 
season  to  the  next.  The  latter  is  thought  the  more 
probable,  as  it  has  been  seen  that  the  blighting  of 
the  tops  (if  not  checked  by  spraying)  is  very  likely 
to  be  followed  by  rot  of  the  tubers,  either  before  or 
after  digging.  Of  course,  no  one  would  think  of 
planting  badly  rotted  potatoes,  but  those  that  are 
but  slightly  affected  may  escape  notice.  These,  if 
planted,  will  be  sufficient  to  start  the  infection  the 
next  year,  and  once  started  it  soon  goes  over  the 
field." 

This  disease  is  very  serious  in  Europe.  In  "Leaf- 
let 23"  of  the  Board  of  Agriculture  and  Fisheries  of 
Great  Britain  is  the  following: 

'*This  disease,  well  termed  by  agriculturists  the 
'  potato  disease, '  has  in  the  past  been  the  cause  of 
immense  loss,  and  is  even  at  the  present  day  the 
chief  trouble  with  which  potato  growers  have  to 
contend. 

"The  first  sign  of  this  disease  is  the  presence  of 
yellowish  spots  on  the  leaves.     These  spots  grad- 


THE  POTATO  181 

ually  increase  in  size  and  become  brown,  this  con- 
dition being  followed  by  the  curling  of  the  leaves. 
If  the  under  surface  of  a  diseased  leaf  is  examined 
with  a  magnifying  glass,  the  fruiting  branches  of 
the  fungus  will  be  seen  forming  a  delicate  white 
mold. 

"The  spores  of  the  fungus  are  exceedingly' 
numerous  and  minute,  and  are  scattered  by  wind, 
or  by  ground  game  and  other  animals  running 
amongst  the  plants.  When  it  is  stated  that  every 
spore  brought  into  contact  with  a  damp  potato 
leaf  is  capable  of  starting  a  new  centre  of  infection, 
the  rapid  spread  of  the  disease  under  favorable 
conditions  will  be  readily  understood.  The  disease 
develops  and  spreads  with  the  greatest  rapidity 
during  damp,  warm  weather,  such  as  often  occurs 
in  July. 

"Spores  that  fall  to  the  ground  are  washed 
through  the  soil  by  rain  and  may  infect  young 
potatoes,  especially  those  growing  near  the  sur- 
face. It  is  probable,  too,  that  the  mycelium  of 
the  fungus  passes  down  diseased  stems  into  the 
young  potatoes.  If  the  season  be  wet  and  warm 
the  mycelium  present  in  the  potato  continues  to 
grow,  soon  causing  brown  spots  to  appear,  and 
ending  in  the  rotting  of  the  tuber.  On  the  other 
hand,  if  potatoes  that  are  infected  be  kept  dry, 
the  mycelium  in  their  substance  may  remain 
stationary  until  the  following  spring,  when  it  may 
commence  growth  and  infect  the  new  crop,  after- 
ward appearing  in  the  fruiting  condition  on  the 
leaves. 

"Preventive  and  remedial  measures  suggested 
are: 

"  1.  Potato  disease  is  propagated  and  cnriied  on 
from  season  to  season  in  the  sets.     It  is  therefore 


182  THE  POTATO 

of  tlie  utmost  Importance  tliat  sound  crops  only 
should  be  kept  for  seed,  and  that  sets  should  be 
stored  under  the  most  favorable  conditions.  In 
an  ordinary  way  seed  potatoes  should  be  carefully 
selected,  all  those  being  rejected  that  show  the 
least  sign  of  taint;  they  should  be  allowed  to 
get  thoroughly  dry  before  clamping  and  should  be 
stored  separately. 

*'2.  Diseased  haulm  should  be  removed  and 
burned  before  the  potatoes  are  hfted.  If  the 
disease  appears  late  in  the  season  when  the  tubers 
have  attained  a  fair  size  much  benefit  may  be 
derived  by  pulling  the  haulm  at  once. 

"3.  Potatoes  are  found  to  become  less  resistant 
to  disease  the  longer  they  have  been  in  cultivation, 
and  therefore  a  good,  new  strain  is  to  be  preferred 
to  an  old  stock;  but  most  of  the  new  varieties 
offered  for  sale  are  more  susceptible  to  disease 
than  old  stocks  of  the  best  kinds,  and  grovv^ers  are 
warned  against  relying  on  the  disease-resisting 
power  of  a  potato  merely  because  it  is  a  recent 
introduction. 

"A  change  of  seed  is  desirable  if  sets  from  a 
sound  crop  can  be  obtained,  because  of  the  increase 
in  the  total  crop  of  sound  tubers  which  is  likely  to 
follow,  but  it  must  not  be  supposed  that  changing 
seed  will  enable  the  plant  to  withstand  disease. 
On  the  contrary,  it  is  often  found  that  the  luxuriant 
growth  of  haulm  which  may  result  from  changing 
seed  renders  the  crop  more  susceptible,  and  that 
the  percentage,  though  not  the  actual  weight,  of 
sound  tubers  is  reduced. 

"4.  The  rows  of  potatoes  should  be  well 
*  earthed'  or  'banked'  up,  as  the  thicker  the  layer 
of  soil  the  less  chance  is  there  of  the  spores  of  the 
fungus  reaching  the  young  tubers. 


THE  rOTATO  183 

"5.  Neither  the  planting  of  vigorous  varieties 
nor  cultivation  can  be  trusted  to  ward  off  the 
disease  in  a  wet  season,  but  spraying  with  Bor- 
deaux mixture  has  been  found  effective  and  is  now 
a  part  of  the  regular  routine  of  cultivation  in  humid 
districts.  Even  in  dry  seasons  when  no  disease  is 
apparent  the  treatment  is  found  to  be  beneficial, 
producing  a  longer  period  of  growth  and  an  in- 
creased yield.  This  is  so  generally  recognized  that 
spraying  has  become  general  in  several  potato- 
growing  districts,  whatever  the  season  promises 
to  be.  As  the  disease  does  not  as  a  rule  make 
much  headway  before  the  end  of  Julj',  spraying  is 
seldom  wanted  for  the  first  early  sorts,  the  leaves 
of  which  will  be  dying  down  before  any  great  harm 
is  done. 

"Bordeaux  mixture  may  be  prepared  as  follows : 

Sulphate  of  copper  or  bluestone 12  lbs. 

Freshly  burnt  quicklime 8  lbs. 

Water 75  to  100  gals. 

"In  order  to  obtain  good  results  from  Bordeaux 
mixture,  careful  attention  must  be  given  (1)  to  the 
materials  employed,  and  (2)  to  the  preparation. 

"1.  Materials:  Copper  sulphate  of  98  per 
cent,  purity  should  be  obtained,  'Agricultural' 
copper  sulphate,  which  usually  contains  iron  sul- 
phate, must  be  avoided.  Iron  sulphate  or  cop- 
peras is  valueless  for  this  purpose. 

"An  easy  test  for  the  presence  of  iron  in  the 
copper  sulphate  is  to  dissolve  a  little  in  water  and 
add  ammonia  with  constant  stirring  until  a  deep, 
blue  liquid  forms;  any  quantity  of  brown  fioeks 
floating  about  in  this  blue  liquid  indicates  the 
presence  of  so  much  iron  that  the  material  should 
be  subjected  to  a  proper  analysis  previous  to  use. 


184  THE  POTATO 

"The  lime  used  should  be  white  *fat'  lime  from 
the  mountain  limestone  or  chalk,  the  kind  of  lime 
which  is  used  by  plasterers.  'It  must  be  freshly 
burnt/  If  of  good  quality  eight  pounds  will  be 
required  to  neutralize  twelve  pounds  of  copper 
sulphate,  but  the  weight  of  lime  required  depends 
upon  the  quality,  and  while  as  little  as  six  to  seven 
pounds  might  be  suJSicient  in  one  case,  as  much  as 
ten  to  twelve  pounds  might  be  required  in  another. 

"2.  Preparation:  The  copper  sulphate  and 
lime  must  always  be  diluted  with  a  large  quantity 
of  water  before  being  brought  into  contact,  other- 
wise a  very  inferior  mixture  will  result.  When 
making  a  small  quantity  the  best  plan  is  to  dissolve 
the  copper  sulphate  in  about  one  half  of  the  water, 
mix  the  lime  with  the  other  half  and  then  bring  the 
two  together;  but  when  a  large  quantity  of  spray 
has  to  be  prepared  it  is  usually  much  more  con- 
venient to  make  a  somewhat  concentrated  mixture 
and  to  dilute  immediately  before  application  to  the 
crop.  Under  no  circumstances,  however,  should 
the  first  mixture  be  made  too  strong,  and  when 
twelve  pounds  of  copper  sulphate  and  eight  pounds 
of  lime  are  to  be  employed,  the  first  mixture  should 
fill  a  forty-gallon  cask.  To  make  the  mixture,  pro- 
ceed as  follows:  Run  into  cask  about  thirty  gallons 
of  water.  Crush  twelve  pounds  of  copper  sul- 
phate, tie  up  in  a  piece  of  sacking  and  suspend 
just  below  the  surface  of  the  water;  or,  if  preferred, 
dissolve  the  bluestone  in  boiling  water  and  pour 
into  the  cask.  Next  moisten  and  slake  eight 
pounds  of  lime;  the  lime  must  be  allowed  to  swell 
and  crumble  slowly;  when  it  has  been  well  slaked, 
work  it  down  first  into  a  thick  cream  and  gradually 
dilute  to  four  or  five  gallons.  The  milk  of  lime 
must  next  be  strained  through  a  fine  sieve  or  piece 


THE  POTATO  185 

of  sacking  to  remove  grit;  it  should  then  be  further 
dikited  with  water  to  about  ten  gallons  and  poured 
slowly  into  the  cask  containing  the  solution  of 
copper  sulphate.  As  the  two  fluids  mix  they  nmst 
be  thoroughly  stirred.  If  the  lime  has  been  slaked 
slowly  and  the  whole  process  has  been  carried  out 
as  indicated,  a  gelatinous  precipitate  forms  in  the 
cask  —  that  is,  the  water  becomes  filled  with 
starch-like  flecks;  these  remain  in  suspension  for  a 
long  time.  On  the  other  hand,  if  too  little  water 
has  been  employed,  or  if  the  lime  has  not  been 
properly  prepared,  or  if  stirring  has  been  neglected, 
a  comparatively  coarse  powder  forms  in  the  mix- 
ture and  soon  settles,  so  that  after  standing  for  an 
hour  or  two  the  fluid  in  the  upper  part  of  the  cask 
is  quite  clear.  The  starch-like  precipitate,  when 
once  it  dries  on  foliage,  adheres  closely  for  months, 
whereas  the  coarser  powder,  which  results  from 
careless  preparation,  washes  off  readily,  so  that  the 
leaves  lose  much  of  their  protection  after  the  first 
heavy  rain,  and  spraying  does  little  or  nothing  to 
check  disease. 

"When  Bordeaux  mixture  has  been  made  it 
should  be  diluted  if  necessary  and  used  without 
delay.  One  or  two  days'  supply  only  should  be 
made  at  a  time,  for  although  well-made  Bordeaux 
mixture  will  keep  fairly  well  for  several  days,  it  is 
best  used  within  forty-eight  hours. 

"For  spraying  potatoes  under  favorable  con- 
ditions the  mixtiu'e,  if  made  in  a  concentrated 
form,  should  be  diluted  to  100  gallons,  but  when 
spraying  must  be  done  in  damp  weather  it  should 
be  diluted  to  from  seventy-five  to  ninety  gallons. 
Before  pouring  into  the  sprayer  it  should  be  stirred 
thoroughly.  If  possible,  a  sprayer  provided  with 
a  dasher  or  other  contrivance  for  keeping  the  mix- 


186  THE  POTATO 

ture  agitated  should  be  used.  If  no  mechanical 
contrivance  is  available,  stirring  should  take  place 
frequently  while  the  work  is  in  progress. 

"The  amount  to  be  applied  per  acre  varies  with 
the  quantity  of  haulm  in  the  crop  to  be  treated,  but 
is  usually  from  100  to  150  gallons  where  the  foH- 
age  is  fully  developed.  The  plants  must  be 
sprayed  from  underneath  as  well  as  from  above, 
so  as  to  reach  the  fungus  on  the  under  side  of  the 
leaves.  Machines  can  be  obtained  which  spray 
the  plants  from  below. 

"The  cost  of  a  single  spraying  need  not  exceed 
$2  per  acre,  and,  with  certain  horse  machines, 
thirty  acres  can  easily  be  treated  in  a  day.  Bor- 
deaux mixture  does  not  begin  to  work  until  several 
days  after  it  has  been  applied,  and  it  must,  there- 
fore, be  used  some  time  before  any  symptoms  of 
disease  are  to  be  expected,  say,  toward  the  end  of 
June,  or  earlj^  in  July,  according  to  the  locality  and 
season.  The  crop  should  be  sprayed  twice  at 
least.  The  first  spraying  should  take  place  as 
soon  as  there  is  a  good  development  of  haulm,  the 
treatment  being  repeated  about  three  weeks  later 
when  the  growth  is  complete.  If  only  one  spray 
ing  is  given  it  should  take  place  about  the  middle 
of  July." 

POTATO   SCAB 

Oospora  scabies  is  one  of  the  most  common 
potato  diseases. 

In  "Bulletin  71"  of  the  Wyoming  Experiment 
Station  it  is  described  as  follows: 

"  This  fungous  disease  is  too  well  known  to  need 
any  description.  All  who  use  as  well  as  all  who 
grow  potatoes  know  the  familiar,  irregular,  sore- 


THE  POTATO  1R7 

like  blotches  which  sometimes  are  so  numerous  as 
nearly  to  cover  the  whole  potato.  Only  the  sur- 
face may  be  affected  or  the  fungus  may  have  pene- 
trated and  broken  down  the  tissues  almost  to  the 
centre.  AVhile  probably  not  wholly  preventable, 
yet  it  is  the  potato  disease  that  is  most  readily  held 
in  check.  With  clean  or  properly  disinfected  seed, 
if  one  puts  it  into  clean  ground  (free  from  the 
fungus)  the  crop  should  and  will  be  essentially 
clean.  It  is  well  known  that  once  the  fungus  gets 
into  the  soil  it  will  live  over  winter  and  infect  the 
next  crop  more  completely  than  the  former.  Just 
how  many  years  may  be  necessary  to  completely 
rid  the  soil  of  the  fungus  is  not  definitely  known,  but 
it  is  certain  that  another  crop  of  potatoes  should 
not  follow  scabby  potatoes  for  two  or  three  years 
and  probably  better  not  for  four  or  five.  Other 
crops  on  this  land  are  not  attacked,  which  points 
anew  the  safetv  and  dcsirabilitv  of  a  scheme  of 
crop  rotation  extending  over  several  years. 

"Having  decided  upon  the  variety  to  be  planted 
— and  this  choice  must  rest  upon  many  characteris- 
tics, such  as  quality,  shape,  period  of  ripening, 
resistance  to  disease,  marketableness,  etc., — then 
select  those  that  are  the  freest  from  scab  of  anv 
that  you  can  find.  It  is  well  to  remember  that  the 
absence  of  the  characteristic  surface  markings  is 
not  conclusive  evidence  that  the  potatoes  are  free 
from  the  fungus.  They  may  have  been  in  contact 
in  the  bin  with  scabby  specimens,  as  a  result  of 
which  they  are  infected  abundantly  with  the  scab 
spores.  Unless  you  are  sure  of  the  condition  of 
the  seed  it  will  pay  as  a  precautionary  measure 
to  treat  (disinfect)  the  seed. 

"The  old  method  is  quite  largely  in  use  in  I  lie 
state  and  nmst  still  be  regarded  with  nnieh  favor. 


188  THE  POTATO 

The  new  method,  however,  has  some  very  practical 
advantages.  Both  are  given  below,  so  that  if  the 
ingredients  for  one  are  not  at  hand,  the  other  may 
be  used. 

"  Corrosive  Sublimate  Treatment.  —  Dissolve  two 
ounces  of  corrosive  sublimate  (bichloride  of  mer- 
cury) in  two  gallons  of  hot  water.  When  the 
corrosive  sublimate  is  dissolved,  add  cold  water 
until  you  have  fourteen  gallons  in  all.  Having 
put  the  potatoes  in  a  gunny  sack,  place  the  sack  in 
the  solution  and  leave  it  there  for  one  and  one  half 
hours.  Then  empty  the  potatoes  out  upon  the 
floor  to  dry  before  cutting  and  planting.  If  they 
can  be  left  thus  exposed  to  the  light  and  air  for  a 
few  days  they  will  grow  all  the  better. 

^"Caution.  —  If  taken  internally  corrosive  sub- 
limate is  a  violent  poison,  hence  all  animals  must 
be  kept  away  from  the  solution  and  the  treated 
seed.  On  account  of  its  action  on  metals  the 
solution  must  be  prepared  in  wooden  vessels,  a 
barrel,  for  instance.  See  that  the  potatoes  are 
clean.  Put  them  into  a  coarse  gunny  sack  and 
place  it  in  the  solution.  The  vessels  and  all  ob- 
jects in  contact  with  this  poisonous  solution  must 
be  destroyed  or  thoroughly  cleaned. 

''Formalin  Treatment. —  Formalin  (or  formal- 
dehyde) may  now  be  secured  at  moderate  cost  at 
any  drug  store,  or  can  be  secured  from  the  larger 
drug  firms  (by  express)  at  50  cents  (or  less)  per 
pound.  Since  this  treatment  is  at  least  as  effec- 
tive as  the  other,  most  people  will  prefer  to  use  it 
for  the  following  reasons:  (1)  It  is  easily  prepared; 
(2)  any  kind  of  vessel  may  be  used;  (3)  it  is  not 
poisonous  to  handle. 

'*  Method,  —  Soak  the  seed  potatoes  for  two  hours 
in  a  solution  of  fifteen  gallons  of  water  and  one 


THE  POTATO  189 

half  pint  (half  pound)  of  formalin.  Smalh  r  or 
larger  quantities  in  the  same  proportion.  Dry  tlie 
soaked  seed,  cut  and  plant  as  usual. 

"It  is  well  to  remember  that  disinfected  seed 
will  be  reinfected  if  it  is  put  back  into  the  dirty 
sacks  or  boxes  from  which  it  was  taken.  If 
to  be  used  again,  disinfect  the  sacks  and  boxes 
also." 

It  will  be  interesting  to  note  how  this  subject  is 
handled  by  the  Board  of  Agriculture  and  Fisheries 
of  Great  Britain.     Their  "Leaflet  137"  says: 

"At  the  present  day  Oospora  scabies  is  one  of 
the  most  widespread  of  diseases  affecting  the  po- 
tato. The  fungus  usually  attacks  the  tubers  while 
young,  forming  scattered  rough  patches  or  scabs 
on  the  surface;  these  patches  gradually  increase 
in  size  and  number,  and  not  infrequently,  when  the 
tuber  is  full-grown,  its  surface  is  more  or  less  com- 
pletely covered  with  scab. 

"The  injury  is  confined  to  the  surface  of  the 
tuber,  the  skin  being  broken  up  into  fragments 
over  the  diseased  patches.  Although  the  market 
value  is  much  depreciated  when  scab  is  present  in 
quantity,  the  quality  of  the  potato  is  not  in  the 
least  impaired  for  eating. 

^^ Prevention  and  Remedies.  —  (1)  If  scabbed  po- 
tatoes are  used  for  'seed'  without  having  been  ster- 
ilized, the  resulting  crop  will  almost  cc^rtaiuly  be 
diseased,  and  in  addition  the  fungus  will  pass  into 
the  soil,  where  it  is  capal^le  of  living  for  several 
years.  Scabbed  potatoes  may  be  used  for  'seed' 
without  the  slightest  danger  of  spreading  the 
disease  if  they  are  immersed  for  two  hours  in  a 
solution  consisting  of  one  pint  of  conunercial  for- 


190  THE  POTATO 

malin  (formaldehyde  40  per  cent.)  mixed  with 
thirty-six  gallons  of  water.  The  potatoes  should 
then  be  spread  out  to  dry,  when  they  may  be  cut 
and  planted  in  the  usual  manner.  Great  care 
must  be  taken  after  potatoes  have  been  treated  as 
above  that  they  are  not  placed  in  sacks  or  hampers 
that  have  contained  scabbed  potatoes. 

"  (2)  Land  that  has  produced  scabbed  potatoes 
is  certain  to  be  infected  with  fimgus,  and  should 
not  be  planted  with  potatoes  for  several  years  after- 
ward; beets,  Swedes,  carrots,  and  cabbages  are 
also  attacked  by  the  fungus.  Cereals  may  be 
sown  with  safety  on  infected  land. 

"  (3)  In  the  case  of  gardens  and  small  allotments , 
where  potatoes  are  of  necessity  grown  every  year, 
the  trenches  in  which  the  potatoes  are  planted 
should  be  sprinkled  with  powdered  sulphur. 

*'  (4)  Lime  favors  the  development  of  the  fungus 
in  the  soil;  the  same  is  true  of  stable  manure,  night- 
soil,  etc.  Acid  manures  only  should  be  apphed  to 
land  that  is  infected. 

"(5)  Peelings  from  infested  potatoes,  vmless 
they  have  been  boiled,  should  not  be  given  to  pigs. 
Burning  is  the  safest,  and  in  the  end  the  most 
economical  method  of  dealing  with  them." 

TIP    BURN,    LEAF    BURN    OR    SCALD 

''This  disease  of  the  leaves  occurs  in  many  parts 
of  the  country  and  is  often  confused  with  early 
blight,"  says  B.  T.  Galloway  in  "Farmers'  Bulletin 
No.  91."  "The  tips  and  edges  of  the  leaves  turn 
brown  and  these  discolored  areas  soon  become  hard 
and  brittle. 

"The  burning  or  scalding  may  occur  at  any 
time  and  as  a  rule  is  the  result  of  unfavorable  con- 


THE  POTATO  11)1 

ditions  surrounding  the  plant.  Long-continued, 
cloudy  and  damp  weather  followed  by  several  hot 
and  bright  days  is  very  apt  to  result  in  the  burn- 
ing of  the  fohage.  This  is  especially  the  case  on 
soils  carrying  a  comparatively  small  percentage  of 
moisture.  When  the  weather  is  cloudy  and  damp 
the  tissues  of  the  potato  become  gorged  with  water 
and  this  has  a  tendency  to  weaken  them.  If  the 
sun  appears  bright  and  hot  when  the  leaves  are  in 
this  condition  there  is  a  rapid  evaporation  of  the 
moisture  stored  up  in  their  cells.  The  evaporation 
may  be  faster  than  the  supply  furnished  by  the 
roots,  and  if  this  continues  for  any  length  of  time 
the  weaker  and  more  tender  parts  first  collapse, 
then  die,  and  finally  turn  brown  and  dry  up.  Tij) 
burn  may  also  occur  as  a  result  of  protracted  dry 
weather. 

"Little  of  a  specific  nature  can  be  said  on  the 
treatment  of  this  trouble.  Numerous  factors  are 
mvolved  in  the  matter,  so  that  only  general  state- 
ments are  possible.  Every  effort  should  be  made 
to  keep  the  plants  in  good  growing  condition,  for 
if  they  become  checked  through  lack  of  proper  food 
or  cultivation,  or  both,  thej' are  more  apt  to  burn. 
It  is  a  fact  that  where  the  Bordeaux  mixture  is 
used  for  other  diseases  burn  is  less  apt  to  occur, 
and  this  furnishes  another  instance  of  the  remark- 
able properties  of  the  fungicide.  Brielly,  therefore, 
the  plants  should  be  kept  as  vigorous  as  possible 
by  good  cultivation,  plenty  of  available  food, 
and  the  application  of  Bordeaux  mixture  as  recom- 
mended for  early  blight. 

"In  many  sections  where  Paris  green  in  water  is 
applied  to  potatoes,  injuries  are  produetMl  which 
cannot  be  distinguished  from  early  bliglil  b\-  an 
ordinary    examination.      U    frequently    happens. 


192  THE  POTATO 

therefore,  that  farmers  are  led  to  believe  that  their 
potatoes  are  affected  with  early  blight  and  other 
diseases  when  the  trouble  has  been  brought  on  by 
themselves  through  the  improper  use  of  Paris  green. 
Injuries  resulting  from  the  use  of  this  substance 
are  very  apt  to  occur  where  flea  beetles  have  eaten 
the  foliage.  The  arsenic  attacks  the  tissues  at  such 
points,  and  as  a  result  more  or  less  circular  brown 
spots  are  produced,  having  for  their  centres  the 
holes  eaten  out  by  the  flea  beetles.  By  combining 
the  Paris  green  with  Bordeaux  mixture,  as  already 
described,  these  injuries  may  be  wholly  avoided. 
"The  cost  of  the  work  of  spraying,  as  described 
here  will  depend  to  a  considerable  extent  upon 
the  kind  of  machinery  used  and  the  price  paid  for 
labor.  With  suitable  apparatus,  and  labor  at 
$1.50  per  day,  potatoes  maybe  sprayed  six  times 
for  about  $6  per  acre.  This  estimate  is  based 
upon  experiments  extending  over  several  years, 
and  includes  the  cost  of  chemicals  as  well  as  labor. 
The  cost  of  treating  scab  is  mainly  in  the  labor 
involved  in  dipping  and  drying  the  seed,  and  sel- 
dom exceeds  15  cents  per  acre.  Much  atten- 
tion has  been  given  to  the  effects  of  Bordeaux 
mixture  on  the  growth  and  yield  of  potatoes  aside 
from  its  value  in  keeping  parasitic  foes  in  check. 
It  has  been  shown  conclusively  that  it  pays  to 
apply  this  preparation  if  for  no  other  purpose  than 
to  induce  a  more  vigorous  growth.  Three  or  four 
applications  of  the  mixture  have  in  many  cases 
increased  the  yield  of  potatoes  50  per  cent.,  so  that 
no  matter  where  the  crop  is  grown,  or  whether 
diseases  are  present  or  not,  the  writer  feels  war- 
ranted in  recommending  the  application  of  the 
mixture,  on  the  ground  that  its  use  will  yield  a 
handsome  return." 


THE  POTATO  v.)S 

DRY    ROT 

Dry  rot,  due  to  Fusariumoxysponim,  lias  been 
known  in  the  potato  world  for  a  good  many  years, 
but  the  real  cause  was  not  understood  until  re- 
cently. A  great  deal  of  research  work  has  been 
done  in  Germany. 

This  dry  rot  is  a  fungous  disease  that  attacks  the 
potato  plant  through  the  root  system,  which  not 
only  destroys  the  root  hairs  and  secondary  roots, 
but  penetrates  the  main  roots,  the  tubers,  and 
later,  when  the  plant  is  practically  destroj-ed,  the 
stem  is  wilted.  It  also  causes  dry  rot  in  potatoes 
in  storage. 

The  disease  is  well  distributed  over  the  potato 
districts  of  practically  all  potato  producing  coun- 
tries. 

A  vast  amount  of  experimenting  has  been  done 
with  the  idea  of  finding  the  best  way  of  com- 
bating the  pest.  In  "Bulletin  229"  of  the  Ohio 
Agricultural  Experiment  Station  Thos.  F.  Manns 
summarizes  the  results  of  their  work.  The  things 
he  says  about  Ohio  apply  to  any  similar  conditions: 

"1.  The  dry-rot  fungus  (Fusarium  oxysporum, 
Schlecht)  of  potato  proves  to  be  a  field  trouble 
common  in  Ohio,  which  causes  a  blight  and  wilt  of 
the  crop. 

"2.  It  produces  a  sick  soil  condition  in  puLato 
districts. 

*'3.  The  field  symptoms  are  characterized  by  a 
cessation  of  growth,  a  yellowing  of  the  foliage,  with 
an  upward  and  inward  rolling  of  the  uj)1)ct  leaves, 
accompanied  by  wilt  during  the  heat  of  the  day. 

"4.  The  sick  soil  conditions  may  reduce  the 
yield  to  50  per  cent,  or  more  of  an  average  crop. 


194  THE  POTATO 

"5.  The  casual  fungus  is  carried  within  the 
tubers. 

"6.  The  internal  infection  is  characterized  by 
brown  or  blackened  areas  usually  in  the  vascular 
ring;  occasionally  it  specks  the  flesh  in  other  areas. 

*'7.  Internally  infected  tubers  are  the  chief 
means  of  distributing  the  disease. 

"8.  The  presence  of  the  disease  in  the  tubers 
may  be  made  loiown  by  cutting  knife  sections  from 
the  stem  end. 

"9.  The  infection  may  be  removed  from 
slightly  infected  seed  by  clipping  away  the  stem 
end  and  following  by  external  treatment  with 
formaldehyde. 

"  10.  No  attempt  should  be  made  to  use  deeply 
infected  seed,  as  the  infection  cannot  be  cut  away. 

"11.  Slightly  infected  seed  will  not  materially 
reduce  the  vield  the  first  season.  It  is  a  means, 
however,  of  infecting  the  soil,  which  may  later 
result  in  sick  fields. 

"  12.     Spraying  will  not  control  the  disease. 

"13.  Proper  storage  prevents  the  progress  of 
the  disease  as  a  dry  rot. 

"14.  Careful  inspection  of  the  seed  should  be 
made  before  placing  it  in  storage.  Cellar  storage 
under  dwellings  should  be  avoided  when  seed  is 
infected.  Proper  pit  storage  will  give  better  re- 
sults. 

"15.  A  seed  plot  on  non-infected  soil  planted 
with  carefully  selected  healthy  seed  will  offer  a 
means  of  getting  a  sound  seed  supply. 

"16.  Sick  fields  should  not  be  planted  in  po- 
tatoes again  for  at  least  five  or  six  years,  and 
even  longer  time  may  be  required  to  work  the 
parasitic  fungus  from  the  soil.  Grass  and  grain 
crops  will  undoubtedly  eliminate  the  fungus  from 


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Various  stages  in  destruction  of  potato  tubers  bj^  Fusarium. 
From  Bulletin  55,  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry,  United  States 
Department  of  Agriculture 


THE  POTATO  105 

the  soil  quicker  than  will  manuring  and  cultivated 
crops. 

"17.  Longer  than  a  three-year  potato  rotation 
should  be  practised. 

"18.  Storage  litter  and  sick  seed  should  not  be 
allowed  to  reach  the  manure  pile,  as  this  will  be  a 
sure  method  of  distributing  the  disease  and  infect- 
ing the  fields. 

"19.  The  disease  demands  further  study.  The 
Department  of  Botany  invites  cooperation  with 
potato  growlers.  Examination  of  seed  potatoes 
and  plants  will  be  made  and  the  results  reported. 

"This  Department,  in  cooperation  with  the  Bu- 
reau of  Plant  Industry  of  the  U.  S.  Department  of 
Agriculture,  has  the  franking  privilege  on  diseased 
plant  material;  the  franks  will  be  sent  to  those  hav- 
ing diseased  material  to  be  forwarded." 

Prof.  B.  O.  Longyear  of  the  Department  of  Bot- 
any and  Forestry  of  the  Colorado  Agricultural  Col- 
lege says: 

"One  of  the  most  widespread  and  common 
diseases  of  the  potato  caused  by  fungi  is  that  com- 
monly known  as  the  Fusarium  disease,  or  Fusarium 
blight.  This  trouble  first  manifests  itself  in  the 
field  by  the  wilting  and  yellowing  of  the  lower 
leaves  of  plants  that  have  reached  the  height  of 
ten  to  twelve  inches.  In  bad  cases  the  entire 
foliage  appears  to  suffer  as  though  the  plant  were 
not  getting  sufficient  moisture.  Later  on,  the  tips 
of  the  leaves  turn  brown  and  dry  up,  leading  to 
the  trouble  commonly  known  as  tip  burn.  The 
edges  of  the  leaves  commonly  roll  inward  during 
the  heat  of  the  day,  although  they  may  partially 
revive  during  the  night. 


196  THE  POTATO 

*' Badly  affected  plants  will  be  found  to  have  the 
root  hairs  and  rootlets  rotted  away  and  often  the 
larger  roots  appear  sickly.  Cross  sections  of  the 
main  root  often  appear  brownish  in  the  region  of 
the  vascular  bundles  or  woody  part.  Under  the 
microscope  thin  sections  of  such  roots  and  of  the 
lower  part  of  the  stem  will  show  the  delicate  fila- 
ments of  the  fungus  which  pass  upward  through  the 
water-conducting  tubes  of  the  plant  and  eventually 
clog  them  to  such  an  extent  that  the  flow  of  sap  is 
greatly  obstructed.  This  is  what  causes  the  wilting 
and  eventual  drying  of  the  foliage  of  the  plant. 

*'The  fungus  also  passes  into  the  tuber-bearing 
stems  under  ground  and  frequentty  enters  the  stem 
end  of  the  tuber  for  some  distance.  In  bad  cases 
the  stem  end  of  the  tuber  may  be  rotted  away  and 
the  presence  of  the  fungus  deeper  in  is  indicated 
by  the  browning  of  the  vascular  ring  shown  in  a 
cross  section  of  the  tuber.  The  fungus  may  also 
enter  the  tuber  from  the  soil  through  any  bruise, 
crack,  or  other  break  in  the  skin.  Attacks  of 
insect  larvse  upon  the  tubers  are  often  followed  by 
this  disease  through  the  wounds  which  the  '  worms ' 
produce. 

"Under  conditions  of  plenty  of  moisture  and 
high  temperature,  this  disease  makes  its  most  rapid 
progress  and  may  reach  its  culmination  at  about 
the  time  when  the  tubers  are  ordinarily  half  to  two 
thirds  grown.  When  a  plant  once  shows  the  infec- 
tion to  any  marked  degree,  all  further  growth 
ceases.  The  plants  seem  to  stand  still  and  event- 
ually wilt  down  entirely  or  else  struggle  along  in  a 
dwarfed  and  sickly  condition  for  some  time. 

*' A  common  source  of  infection  in  newly  planted 
fields  is  through  the  use  of  tubers  for  seed  that 
already   contain   the   fungus.     Another   common 


THE  POTATO  197 

source  of  the  trouble  is  from  planting  the  potato 
in  fields  that  have  previously  shown  the  disease 
within  two  or  three  years.  Such  soils  are  said  to 
be  'sick.' 

"A  second  period  of  destruction  due  to  this 
disease  comes  during  storage.  Tubers  infected  in 
the  field  when  stored  under  conditions  of  moderate 
temperature  are  apt  to  show  a  high  percentage 
of  dry  rot.  In  such  cases  the  fungus  causes  a 
blackening  of  the  tuber,  with  a  final  outbreak  of  a 
whitish  mold,  and  may  serve  to  infect  the  wounds 
in  other  tubers. 

"In  the  control  of  this  widespread  and  destruc- 
tive disease  much  emphasis  should  be  placed  upon 
the  use  of  tubers  free  from  the  disease.  ('Bulletin 
229,'  Ohio  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.)  Ex- 
periments have  been  tried  with  diseased  tubers 
which  indicate  that  if  the  diseased  portion  is  largely 
cut  away  and  the  tubers  treated  with  formalde- 
hyde solution  in  water  such  seed  will  give 
nearly  as  good  results  as  tubers  from  healthy 
plants.  Potatoes  should  not  be  grown  on  the  same 
soil  immediately  following  a  crop  of  the  same  kind 
which  showed  the  disease.  Experiments  along  this 
line  indicate  that  even  a  three-year  rotation  is  too 
short  to  make  it  safe. 

"Storage  of  the  tubers  is  also  an  important  mat- 
ter. It  has  been  found  that  storing  in  outdoor 
pits  is  preferable  to  cellar  storage,  as  a  rule,  and  the 
lower  temperature  at  which  the  tubers  are  kept 
under  this  method  usually  prevents,  to  some  ex- 
tent, the  spread  of  the  dry  rot.  Being  a  soil  fun- 
gus and  capable  of  living  for  several  seasons  in  the 
soil  of  an  infested  field,  no  spray  which  can  be  ap- 
plied to  the  part  of  the  plants  above  ground  is 
effective  in  controlling  the  disease. " 


198  THE  POTATO 


RHIZOCTONIA 


This  disease  of  the  potato  is  sometimes  known  to 
growers  as  "Little  Potatoes,"  "Stem  Rot,"  and 
"Rosette." 

Considerable  research  work  in  regard  to  rhizoc- 
tonia  was  done  by  Prof.  F.  M.  Rolfs  when  he  was 
at  the  Colorado  Agricultural  College.  Prof.  A. 
Nelson  also  presents  some  interesting  facts  in  "Bul- 
letin 71 "  of  the  Wyoming  Experiment  Station. 
In  the  information  which  follows  these  two  sources 
have  been  consulted  freely. 

This  rhizoctonia  fungus  attacks  the  underground 
portions  of  the  plant.  It  is  a  true  parasite,  hving 
either  in  the  internal  tissues  or  upon  the  external 
parts.  It  attacks  the  stem  at  or  just  below  the 
surface  of  the  ground,  destroying  the  bark  in  whole 
or  in  part.  If  the  attack  be  a  severe  one  it  may 
result  in  the  death  of  the  plant,  but  if  less  severe 
it  may  induce  a  wet  rot  and  thus  result  in  the  death 
of  the  plant,  but  if  still  less  severe  it  may  simply 
girdle  the  stem,  the  plant  continumg  to  live  and 
often  producing  as  a  result  of  the  girdling  an  en- 
larged and  apparently  vigorous  top.  Owing  to  the 
fact  that  the  girdling  will  prevent  the  return  of  the 
elaborated  sap  on  the  underground  portions,  there 
can  be  no  tubers  formed,  or  if  formed  they  will  be 
few  and  small.  In  many  instances  when  the  plant 
is  thus  prevented  from  forming  the  underground 
tubers  it  will  throw  out  from  the  stem  at  points 
above  the  injury  many  short  tuber-forming 
stems.  These  tubers  are  small  and  green,  and  of 
no  value. 

The  tubers  are  also  attacked  by  the  fungus,  and 
on  the  surface  of  these  small,  hard  knots  of  myce- 
lium,  known  as  sclerotia,   are  produced.     These 


Rhizoctonia.  Showing  devclopuuMil  of  "Iittl(^  potatoes" 
on  tlic  l)r;iii(li  liccausc  of  llic  effort  of  the  j)lant  to  form 
tubers  al)ove  the  i)oiiil  of  injury.  From  HnlK-t  in  70.  ( "olo- 
rado  Experiment  Slalio;i 


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■'"■^'-I'-^WJI 


Rhizoctonia.  The  illustration,  from  Bulletin  70  of  the  Colorado 
Agricultural  Ex])erinuMit  Station,  shows  stems  of  a  you.ng  potato 
])lant  that  has  been  affected  from  the  seed. 


THE  POTATO  199 

appear  as  dark  brown  bodies,  irregular  in  outline 
and  varying  from  a  mere  speek  to  tlie  size  of  a  grain 
of  wheat.  These  spots  resemble  dirt,  but  do  not 
wash  off  readily. 

Prof.  F.  jNI.  Rolfs  found  three  distinct  stages  in 
the  development  of  the  disease  in  Colorado,  as 
follows: 

1.  Rhizoctonia  stage  —  the  first  or  growing 
(vegetative)  stage.  Tw  o  kinds  of  liyphse  occur  — 
the  light  colored  ones  in  the  inner  tissue  of  the  host, 
which,  if  abundant,  produce  wet  rot;  dark  colored 
ones  in  the  outer  tissues  forming  a  close  web  of 
felted  covering,  which  constitutes  merely  a  girdle  or 
band.  If  the  last  only  is  present,  the  plant  is  not 
killed,  but  may  seem  unusually  healthy. 

2.  The  Corticium  stage.  It  had  been  sup- 
posed that  the  fungus  produced  no  spores,  but  was 
perpetuated  solely  by  the  sclerotia,  which  are  the 
closely  compacted  masses  of  the  mycelium  forming 
the  dark  scale-like  or  grain-like  bodies  on  the  tu- 
bers and  stems  of  the  host  plants.  At  one  stage  in 
its  development,  however,  spores  are  formed  on 
short  lateral  branches  arising  from  the  hyphse  of 
the  rhizoctonia  stage.  These  are  so  readily  dis- 
lodged that  their  presence  is  easily  overlooked 
when  a  microscopic  examination  is  made.  It  is 
probable  that  the  spores  serve  merely  for  the  rapid 
dissemination  of  the  disease  during  its  vegetative 
period. 

3.  The  Sclerotium  stage.  This  is  the  period 
when  provision  is  made  for  the  perpetuation  of  the 
fungus.  The  sclerotia  on  the  tubers  of  an  infected 
crop,  on  the  stems  of  the  potato  and  weeds,  carry 
the  disease  over  from  year  to  year. 

To  stamp  out  the  disease  the  sclerotia  must  be 
killed,  and  this  is  done  by  the  use  of  clean  seed. 


200  THE  POTATO 

rotation  of  crops,  and  treatment  of  infected  seed 
the  same  as  for  scab. 

Following  is  a  description  of  some  of  the  insect 
enemies : 

THE  COLORADO  POTATO  BEETLE 

The  following  is  by  S.  Arthur  Johnson,  in  *' Bul- 
letin 175"  of  the  Colorado  Agricultural  Experi- 
ment Station: 

"This  insect  (Leptinotarsa  decemlineata)  is  a 
native  of  a  strip  of  country  which  lies  just  east  of 
the  Rocky  Mountain  range  and  includes  eastern 
Colorado.  In  its  native  state  the  beetle  lives  upon 
the  wild  weeds  of  the  potato  family.  The  chief  of 
these  is  the  buffalo  bur,  but  the  beetle  is  quite  a 
general  feeder  on  plants  of  this  group,  including  not 
only  potatoes,  but  tomatoes,  eggplant,  tobacco,  and 
pepper. 

"The  adult  beetle  is  oval  in  shape,  about  three 
eighths  of  an  inch  in  length  and  a  trifle  narrower 
than  long.  The  ground  color  is  yellow  and  the 
wings  are  marked  by  ten  black  lines  running 
lengthwise.  There  are  also  black  markings  on  the 
thorax.  The  eggs  are  bright  yellow  when  fresh 
and  are  generally  laid  on  the  under  surface  of  the 
leaves  in  patches  containing  from  ten  to  fifty  each. 
The  young  are  dark  red  or  brown  grubs  with  black 
heads.  The  color  becomes  lighter  as  the  grubs 
mature. 

"The  adult  beetles  live  over  winter  usually  in 
the  ground  at  a  depth  of  from  four  to  six  inches. 
Where  the  ground  is  loose  they  frequently  go  much 
deeper.  When  the  ground  becomes  warmed  by  the 
spring  sun  the  beetles  emerge  and  seek  food  plants 


THE  POTATO  201 

on  which  they  may  feed  and  lay  eggs.  They  are 
more  or  less  abundant  every  year  and  do  consid- 
erable damage  to  early  potatoes.  The  late  crops 
in  Colorado  generally  escape  because  most  of  the 
adult  beetles  die  off  before  the  potatoes  appear 
above  ground. 

"The  eggs  hatch  in  from  four  to  eight  days, 
depending  on  the  temperature.  The  larvse  feed 
at  first  on  the  surface  of  the  leaf  where  they 
hatch,  but  soon  migrate  to  the  top  of  the  plant 
and  eat  the  tender  young  leaves  which  are  just 
unfolding.  The  young  reach  full  growth  about 
three  weeks  later.  Soon  eggs  are  laid  again  and 
the  second  generation  hatches.  Ordinarily,  two 
broods  are  all  that  we  may  expect. 

"The  best  and  most  practical  remedy  is  spray- 
ing with  some  arsenical  poison.  In  commercial 
fields  the  best  machine  is  a  power  sprayer  drawn 
by  horses.  In  garden  patches  a  hand  sprayer  does 
very  good  work.  Arsenate  of  lead,  altogether  the 
best  poison,  is  a  white  paste  which  must  be  care- 
fully mixed  in  a  little  water  before  it  is  poured  into 
the  spray  machine.  It  should  be  strained  through 
a  fine  screen  in  order  to  remove  all  lumps  which 
might  clog  the  nozzles.  Apply  the  poison  at  the 
rate  of  six  or  eight  pounds  to  a  hundred  gallons 
of  water.  The  proper  time  to  spray  is  when  the 
grubs  begin  to  appear  at  the  tops  of  the  stems. 
Arsenate  of  lead  does  not  kill  as  quickly  as  Paris 
green,  but  it  sticks  to  the  leaves  much  longer  and 
the  benefits  can  be  seen  for  weeks,  even  after  rains. 
Paris  green  is  the  old  standby,  is  cheaper  for  a 
single  application,  and  is  still  the  most  used.  This 
poison  is  mixed  with  water  at  the  rate  of  a  pound 
to  seventy -five  or  one  hundred  gallons.  There 
is  danger  that  this  substance  will  burn  the  foliage 


202  THE  POTATO 

of  the  potato,  and  to  avoid  this  it  is  well  to  add 
the  milk  from  two  pounds  of  slaked  lime  to  each 
hundred  gallons  of  water  used.  While  spraying 
either  of  these  poisons  the  contents  of  the  spraying 
machme  should  be  kept  well  agitated.  Sometimes 
the  pest  is  confined  to  small  areas.  In  such  cases 
the  insects  are  often  controlled  by  the  use  of  dust 
sprayers,  which  either  blow  the  Paris  green  out  in 
fine  clouds,  or  dust  out  the  same  poison  when  it  has 
been  mixed  with  flour  or  carefully  screened  air- 
slaked  hme. " 

THE  POTATO  FLEA  BEETLE 

The  facts  about  this  insect  (Epitrix  cucumeris) 
which  follow  were  written  by  S.  Arthur  Johnson 
for  Colorado  Agricultural  Experiment  Station, 
"Bulletin  No.  175": 

"When  tomatoes  are  first  set  out  or  potatoes 
first  come  up  there  may  often  be  found  on  them 
tiny  black  beetles  which  jump  when  alarmed. 
Thev  are  called  the  flea  beetles  because  of  this 
habit,  though  they  are  not  closely  related  to  the 
flea. 

"The  adult  insects  live  over  winter  and  appear 
during  the  latter  part  of  May  and  first  of  June. 
They  get  their  living  by  eating  tiny  holes  in  the 
surface  of  the  leaves  of  plants  of  the  potato  family, 
and  often  attack  cucumbers  and  beans.  The  in- 
sects often  congregate  in  such  numbers  that  the 
leaves  of  the  plants  appear  almost  black  with  them. 
Newly  set  tomato  plants  and  young  potatoes  fre- 
quently have  their  leaves  so  badly  eaten  that  they 
shrivel  and  the  tomatoes  may  die.  Ordinarily,  the 
stand  of  the  potato  crop  is  not  seriously  injured  in 


THE  POTATO  203 

this  way.  Their  greatest  damage  to  potatoes  in 
Colorado  is  doue  by  the  larvae,  which  live  under 
ground.  These  larvae  are  tiny  white  giiibs  which 
attain  a  length  of  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch.  The 
first  brood  is  to  be  found  during  June  or  early  July. 
They  frequently  cut  into  and  destroy  the  young 
tuber  stems  of  the  potatoes,  thus  preventing  a  reg- 
ular setting  of  the  crop.  The  second  brood  of 
larv^se  appear  during  August  and  September.  This 
brood  bores  into  the  flesh  and  under  the  skin  of  the 
potatoes,  causing  a  pimply  or  scabby  development, 
which  may  cau!?e  great  waste  in  preparing  the  tu- 
bers for  the  table  and  seriously  depreciate  their 
market  value. 

*'No  satisfactory  remedy  for  this  pest  is  known. 
The  leaf  injuries  to  young  potatoes  and  tomatoes 
may  be  largely  avoided  by  spraying  the  leaves 
thoroughly  with  Bordeaux  mixture  to  wdiich  Paris 
green  is  often  added.  The  insects  appear  to  avoid 
the  parts  of  the  plant  covered  with  these  disagree- 
able substances  and  to  seek  fresh  tissues  upon 
which  to  feed.  It  is  not  certain  where  the  insects 
hibernate,  but  they  are  found  often  in  the  fall  in 
large  numbers  feeding  on  stray  potato  plants  or 
pieces  of  tubers  which  have  been  left  in  the  fields. 
It  is  well  to  clear  up  the  fields  immediately  after 
the  crop  is  gathered.  These  insects  are  seldom,  if 
ever,  found  on  new  ground,  and  are  much  worse 
where  potatoes  are  planted  in  succession." 

GRASSHOPPERS 

Grasshoppers  are  not  often  counted  as  an  insect 
enemy  of  the  potato,  but  their  ravages  in  eastern 
Colorado  have  been  such  that  growers  have  lost 
heavily.     S.  Arthur  Johnson  in  "Bulletin  175"  of 


204  THE  POTATO 

the  Colorado  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  de- 
scribes the  insect  as  follows: 

"There  are  many  kinds  of  grasshoppers,  but  the 
species  that  become  injurious  have  life  histories 
which  are  very  much  alike .  The  eggs  are  laid  in 
the  fall  in  packets  in  the  ground,  containing  from 
thirty  to  a  hundred  eggs.  Their  position  is  about 
an  inch  below  the  surface  of  the  soil.  The  insects 
appear  to  select  places  which  are  comparatively 
dry  in  which  to  deposit  the  eggs,  and  we  have  found 
most  of  them  this  year  in  patches  of  weeds  and 
grass  under  fences,  and  along  ditch  banks  and  road- 
sides. The  young  hatch  rather  late  in  the  spring 
and  do  not  become  full-grown  until  midsummer  or 
later. 

"Grasshoppers  frequently  injure  potato  fields 
by  invading  them  from  the  borders,  but  this  is  not 
one  of  their  favorite  food  plants.  The  most  serious 
relation  of  grasshoppers  to  the  potatoes  is  indirect 
rather  than  immediate.  Potato  growers  depend 
on  alfalfa  to  renew  and  enrich  the  soil.  The  pres- 
ence of  grasshoppers  in  the  fields  newly  sown  to 
alfalfa  is  disastrous,  for  they  quickly  destroy  the 
little  plants  and  it  is  impossible  to  obtain  a  stand. 
This  prevents  a  proper  rotation  of  crops. 

"The  best  remedy  to  employ  during  fall  and 
spring  is  the  destruction  of  the  eggs.  The  first  step 
in  this  work  is  to  locate  the  eggs.  Inspection 
should  be  made  everywhere  in  the  surface  of  the 
soil  for  the  pods  of  eggs.  When  the  infested  areas 
have  been  located  they  should  be  plowed  deeply 
to  bury  the  eggs,  or  disked  or  harrowed  very 
thoroughly  to  break  up  the  pods  so  that  they  will 
be  exposed  to  the  ravages  of  birds  and  animals  or 
dried  out  before  they  have  time  to  develop. 


THE  POTATO  205 

The  earlier  in  the  fall  that  this  remedy  can  be  ap- 
plied the  more  satisfactory  will  be  the  results.  It 
is  better  not  to  trust  to  one  treatment,  but  to  work 
over  these  places  several  times  at  short  intervals. 
When  young,  or  even  when  full-grown,  grasshop- 
pers may  be  caught  successfully  in  a  hopper  pan. 
If  this  is  set  on  wheels  a  few  inches  above  the  sur- 
face of  the  ground  and  driven  over  the  alfalfa  when 
that  is  a  few  inches  high,  great  numbers  may  be 
caught.  The  best  time  to  do  this  is  in  the  early 
morning  when  the  hoppers  are  on  the  tops  of  the 
stems  and  somewhat  numbed  with  the  cold.  A 
third  remedy  is  arsenic-bran  mash.  This  sub- 
stance is  made  by  mixing  white  arsenic  with  bran 
at  the  rate  of  one  pound  of  arsenic  to  twenty  of 
bran.  After  the  substances  are  thoroughly  mixed 
add  sujSicient  water  to  make  a  sticky  but  not  too 
sloppy  material.  Some  add  a  little  anise  or  syrup. 
The  mixture  should  be  scattered  late  in  the  after- 
noon or  early  in  the  morning  so  that  the  hoppers 
will  get  it  before  the  hot  sun  has  dried  it  up. 

"In  the  Greeley  experiments  of  1910  the  pota- 
toes were  sprayed  with  Bordeaux  mixture  to  test 
the  value  of  this  substance  as  a  repellent  to  grass- 
hoppers. The  results  appeared  to  be  favorable  as 
to  keeping  off  grasshoppers,  but  indecisive  as  to  the 
prevention  of  flea  beetle  injuries  to  potato  tubers. " 

THE    POTATO    EELWORM 

The  Potato  Eelworm  (a  thread  worm,  Hetero- 
dera  Radicola)  is  about  one  twenty-fifth  of  an  inch 
long,  and  works  in  the  mature  tuber.  It  has  been 
found  in  Nevada  potatoes  shipped  to  California. 
The  following  is  from  Nevada  Experiment  Station 
"Bulletin  76"- 


206  THE  POTATO 

"The  accompanying  photograph  shows  the  ex- 
ternal appearance  of  badly  diseased  potatoes. 
The  surface  of  the  potato  is  more  or  less  wrinkled, 
and  dotted  with  circular  or  oval  pimples  somewhat 
smaller  than  a  pinhead,  or  with  more  irregular  and 
larger  nodules.  The  nodules  are  of  grayish  or 
brownish  color,  more  or  less  depressed  in  the  centre 
and  sometimes  surrounded  by  a  slight  furrow.  In 
early  stages  the  potato  may  be  full  and  firm  and 
the  pimples  so  inconspicuous  that  they  may  easily 
be  overlooked.  When  the  disease  is  more  advanced 
the  nodules  are  more  prominent,  the  specimen  more 
or  less  shriveled  and  of  softer  consistency  than 
normal.  The  easiest  way  to  determine  whether  a 
suspected  tuber  is  diseased  or  not  is  to  cut  off 
slices.  If  diseased,  the  cut  surface  will  show  sev- 
eral dry,  brownish  spots  somewhat  smaller  than 
the  head  of  a  pin  and  extending  from  a  sixteenth 
to  a  quarter  of  an  inch  into  the  flesh.  They  are 
usually  circular  or  oblong  in  shape  and  consist  of  a 
brownish  ring  enclosing  a  central,  whitish,  pulpy 
core.  Beneath  the  pimples  there  is  a  similar  brown 
dry  rot-like  area  which  may  or  may  not  connect 
with  the  interior  spots  or  worm  burrows.  Some- 
times the  burrows  are  so  numerous  and  close  to- 
gether as  to  form  an  irregular  continuous  mass  like 
a  number  of  small  shot  close  pressed  together. 
More  rarely  the  burrows  may  extend  deeper  into 
the  flesh. 

*' Badly  diseased  potatoes  may  shrivel  up  to  one 
half  the  natural  size,  are  softer  and  less  nutritious 
than  normal  and  of  course  are  not  desirable  for 
human  food.  The  burrov/s  afiford  entrance  for  the 
bacteria  of  decay,  so  that  infested  potatoes  will  not 
keep  as  well  as  healthy  ones. 

"If  a  portion  of  the  pulpy  centre  of  one  of  the 


The  Potato  Mclwonn.  sliowiiii:  t\y,iis.  ^\o^Ills.  and  iiitVctcd 
potato.  —  From  liulldin  7(!  of  the  Aiiricultural  Exi)orimeiit 
Station  of  I  lie   riii\cr>il\-  of  \c\a(la 


n 


THE  POTATO  207 

burrows  is  scraped  out  and  examined  with  the 
microscope,  it  will  be  found  to  contain  numerous 
eggs,  larva?,  3'oung  and  adult  worms  like  those 
figured  in  the  illustration.  The  potato  cells  have 
broken  walls  and  the  starch  grains  are  fewer  in 
number  than  in  healthy  tissue  and  those  present 
are  of  smaller  size. 

**The  disease  is  spread  by  planting  infested  seed 
potatoes.  We  do  not  know  to  what  extent  the 
worms  may  hve  and  multiply  in  the  soil  itself  or 
how  long  a  soil  may  remain  infected.  This  impor- 
tant point  can  be  settled  only  by  careful  obser- 
vation and  experiment. 

"How  to  free  infected  soil  from  the  parasite  is  a 
question  which  the  knowledge  at  present  at  our 
command  will  not  permit  us  to  answer  satisfac- 
torily. Sterilization  or  disinfection  on  so  large  a 
scale  is  not  practicable.  Possibly  deep  plowing, 
letting  the  ground  lie  fallow  for  a  year,  or,  where 
feasible,  covering  the  fields  with  water  during  the 
winter  months,  may  prove  to  be  effective.  The 
best  advice  for  the  present,  it  seems  to  us,  is  to 
plant  infected  fields  with  some  other  kind  of  crop, 
preferably  grain  or  alfalfa  rather  than  a  root  crop, 
such  as  sugar-beets,  which  might  be  attacked  by 
the  same  pest. " 


CHAPTER  XVI 

DINING    CARS,    HOTELS,    AND    RESTAURANTS 

THERE  are  no  keener  students  of  the  food 
problem  than  the  best  hotel,  restaurant, 
and  dining-car  men. 

Two  vitally  essential  things  appeal  to  them  — 
quality  and  economy. 

Such  men  as  J.  F.  Smart  of  the  dining-car  service 
on  the  New  York  Central  Lines;  Sam  Dutton  of  the 
Albany  Hotel,  and  Col.  Morse  of  the  Brown 
Palace  Hotel,  Denver;  Ford  Harvey  and  A.  T. 
Hilliard  of  the  Fred  Harvey  Eating  Houses  and 
dining  cars  on  the  Santa  Fe,  and  K.  L.  Eagan, 
formerly  of  the  North  Side  Inn,  Jerome,  Idaho, 
know  more  about  potatoes  than  95  per  cent,  of 
the  growers. 

It  would  be  a  splendid  thing  if  growers  could 
meet  occasionally  with  these  large  critical  buyers 
and  users.  The  caterer  to  great  numbers  of 
critical  people  is  willing  and  anxious  to  pay  for 
superior  quality  in  a  product,  for  in  the  case  of 
potatoes  the  best  and  highest  priced  will  often  be 
the  cheapest.  He  would  tell  the  grower  that  the 
smooth,  even,  medium-sized  potato,  could  he 
get  quantities  of  them  for  the  entire  annual  supply 
and  be  sure  that  entire  sacks  and  shipments  would 
be  all  alike,  would  be  worth  25  to  50  per  cent,  more 
than  the  product  now  purchased. 

The  hotel  man  wants  a  potato  of  good  cjuality  — 
a  tuber  that  has  been  evenly  and  uniformly  grown 
to  maturity  with  no  check  at  any  time,  then  well 

208 


THE  POTATO  209 

ripened  and  stored.  When  the  potato  plant  ex- 
periences drought,  the  development  of  the  tuber  is 
stopped.  Moisture  following  this  starts  a  second 
growth,  generally  watery  and  waxy  —  and  to  the 
detriment  of  the  part  developed  before  the  dry  time. 
A  good  potato  is  firm  and  crisp,  with  tissues  sound 
and  plump  and  cells  well  filled  with  starch.  This 
cooks  evenly  and  is  both  nutritious  and  delicious. 

Flavor  in  potatoes  is  receiving  more  attention 
than  ever  before.  The  flavor  of  the  tuber  is  sup- 
posed to  depend  on  the  mineral  matter,  citric  acid 
and  other  substances  dissolved  in  the  juice. 
Flavor  is  influenced  both  by  variety  and  the  con- 
ditions under  which  the  plant  is  grown. 

There  is  as  much  difference  in  the  flat  and  taste- 
less or  bitter  and  biting  flavor  of  the  potato  of  low 
quality  and  the  rich,  nutty  flavor  of  the  better 
sorts  as  there  i«  between  rancid  and  good  butter. 
.  Potatoes  sell  in  hotels  and  dining  cars  at  from 
5  to  15  cents  an  order,  and  a  tuber  of  one  pound 
weight  or  a  little  less  is  an  ideal  order.  There 
should  never  be  any  trouble  in  selling  potatoes 
at  approximately  this  size  for  one  cent  each.  This 
would  be  60  cents  a  bushel,  or  $1  a  hundred,  a 
good  price  if  it  could  be  assured. 

In  every  local  territory  some  grower  or  set  of 
growers  should  be  able  to  work  up  a  good  trade 
with  hotels  and  restaurants.  If  a  superior  prod.- 
uct  can  be  furnished  regularly,  the  caterer  will 
be  glad  to  give  prominence  to  the  name  of  the 
farm  on  which  the  potato  is  produced,  or  to  the 
variety  and  locality,  thereby  helping  the  individual 
grower  and  localitv  and  the  whole  industrv. 

Buyers  for  dining-car  service  on  American  rail- 
roads were  among  the  first  to  make  cooking  tests 
of  the  crop  before  purchasing. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

FERTILIZERS 

THE  object  of  fertilizing  is  to  have  available 
in  the  soil  a  sufficient  quantity  of  all  the 
elements  the  plant  needs  for  making  a  max- 
imum crop. 

It  is  also  necessary  that  the  soil  be  in  such  per- 
fect mechanical  condition  that  plant  food  may  be 
made  available,  and  that  the  roots  and  rootlets 
of  the  plant  may  be  able  to  easily  and  readily  take 
up  this  available  plant  food. 

Theoretically,  in  order  to  determine  the  amount 
of  fertilizer  a  crop  should  require,  it  would  only  be 
necessary  to  have  a  chemical  analysis  and  know  the 
tonnage  of  the  crop,  and  have  an  analysis  to  show 
the  amount  of  fertility  in  the  soil.  Practically, 
these  analyses  constitute  only  one  of  a  combination 
of  factors  that  should  be  used  in  estimating  what 
fertilization  is  necessary. 

The  crop  indicates  whether  or  not  the  fertili- 
zation is  right  for  immediate  returns,  but  the 
analyses  should  be  a  guide  to  the  grower  in  esti- 
mating what  should  be  done  to  maintain  large 
crops  continuously. 

A  great  many  formulas  for  fertilizing  have  been 
w^orked  out  by  growers  and  experiment  stations 
both  in  America  and  Europe.  A  number  of  these 
will  be  given  —  not  that  they  should  be  used 
simply  because  they  have  been  successful  under 

210 


THE  POTATO  211 

other  conditions,  but  that  they  may  be  used  as  a 
guide  for  experimenting. 

There  is  removed  in  a  (iOO-bushel  crop  of  pota- 
toes approximately: 

160  pounds  of  nitrogen 
60      "         "    phosphoric  acid 
160      "        "    potash 

An  acre  of  soil  eight  inches  deep  weighs  about 
2,375,000  pounds.  (This  varies  somewhat  and 
this  estimate  is  for  soil  on  the  Twin  Falls  North 
Side  Irrigation  Project,  Jerome,  Idaho.)  The  ele- 
iiK^nts  of  fertility  vary,  but,  as  an  example,  the  soil 
at  Jerome,  Idaho,  contains: 

.47  per  cent,  of  potash 

.11  per  cent,  of  phosphoric  acid 

.06  per  cent,  of  nitrogen 

This  would  be  a  total  of 

Nitrogen 1,425     pounds 

Phosphoric    acid .  .    2,612.5  pounds 
Potash 17,692.5  pounds 

Even  though  it  is  not  possible  for  plants  to  use 
all  of  this,  if  proper  cultivation  methods  are  used 
there  is  food  enough  to  last  for  a  great  many  years. 

The  three  elements  of  fertility  that  are  called 
the  *' essential  elements"  are  nitrogen,  phosphoric 
acid  and  potash.  At  least  ten  other  elements 
enter  into  the  plant  and  are  important  and  neces- 
sary for  the  production  of  plants.  All  but  these 
three  are  used  in  small  quantities  and  it  is  generally 
considered  by  students  of  the  soil  that  the  seven  — 
magnesium,  sodium,  chlorin,  sulphur,  iron,  sili- 
con and  calcium  —  are  present  in  most  soils  in 
sufficient  quantities  to  supply  the  needs  of  crops 


212  THE  POTATO 

almost  indefinitely.  The  one  exception  to  this  is 
Hme,  and  its  use  is  generally  considered  to  be  more 
to  make  conditions  right  for  the  making  available 
of  other  elements  than  as  an  element  of  plant  food 
itself. 

The  potato  plant  —  leaf,  vine,  stem,  root,  and 
tuber  —  is  composed  of  elements  taken  from  the  soil 
and  air.  The  plant  is  started  from  stored-up  nutri- 
ment in  the  tuber  or  part  thereof  that  is  planted. 
After  the  start,  the  rootlets  take  water  (hydrogen 
and  oxygen),  nitrogen,  the  phosphates,  potash  and 
the  other  mineral  elements  from  the  soil.  These 
are  taken  up  by  the  movement  of  sap  to  the  leaves. 
The  leaves  take  carbon  and  oxygen  from  the  air 
through  the  stomata  or  breathing  pores  on  their 
under  surface;  the  various  elements  are  trans- 
formed by  the  sunshine,  heat,  protoplasm  and 
chlorophyl,  and  water  (hydrogen  and  oxygen)  and 
carbonic  acid  gas  are  given  off  by  the  leaves.  The 
food  which  is  manufactured  or  transformed  is 
deposited  throughout  the  plant.  A  large  part  of  it 
goes  to  the  storehouse  of  the  enlarged  underground 
stem  or  tuber. 

An  average  plant  is  made  up  somewhat  as  fol- 
lows : 

Phosphate,  potash  and  other  minerals  (from 

the  soil) 5.0  per  cent. 

Nitrogen  (from  the  soil  and  air)         .      .      .  1.5  per  cent. 

Hydrogen  (from  vrater) 6.5  per  cent. 

Oxygen  (from  water  and  air)               .      .      .  4'2 . 0  per  cent. 

Carbon  (from  air)          45 . 0  per  cent. 

From  this  it  appears  that  Nature  is  lavish  in  its 
supplies,  and  that  the  soil,  the  condition  of  which  is 
more  or  less  under  the  control  of  man,  contributes 
a  comparatively  small  share  in  the  plant's  economy. 


THE  POTATO  213 

This  part  is  very  important,  however,  so  much  so 
that  in  many  instances  success  or  failure  depends 
on  how  it  is  looked  after. 

In  stating  the  part  the  elements  have  in  the 
growth  of  the  plant  it  must  be  considered  that  the 
statements  are  relative  and  not  absolute. 

Nitrogen  is  largely  instrumental  in  providing 
growth  in  plants,  heavy,  luxuriant  stems  and 
leaves  being  credited  to  a  liberal  supply  of  this 
element  in  available  form.  A  deficiency  is  shown 
by  weak,  yellow  growth.  The  elements  of  plant 
food  in  the  soil  are  transformed  or  manufactured 
in  the  leaves  in  combination  with  sunlight  and  the 
gases  of  the  air  into  the  substances  that  form  the 
edible  tubers.  In  order  that  these  processes  be 
carried  on  with  the  best  results  there  must  be  a 
strong,  healthy  manufacturing  establishment  —  the 
])lant. 

Phosphoric  acid  hastens  the  maturity  of  crops 
and  influences  the  production  of  seeds  in  fruits. 
In  the  potato  it  is  supposed  to  influence  the  pro- 
duction of  starch. 

Potash  is  supposed  to  influence  yield,  and  be  a 
factor  in  the  formation  of  starch. 

Like  many  other  things  concerned  with  the  pro- 
duction of  crops  and  the  working  of  the  various 
elements  in  nature's  laboratorv,  the  exact  offices  of 
potash  and  phosphoric  acid  are  not  known,  but 
can  only  be  judged  and  estimated  by  experiments 
and  results.  In  general,  it  is  known  that  nitrogen 
is  mostly  concerned  with  growth  of  plants,  and 
phosphoric  acid  and  potash  with  the  fruit  or 
crop. 

Nitrogen  is  obtained  from  the  following  sources: 

(1)  Organic  —  Natural  products  in  which  ni- 
trogen is  combined  with  other  elements  such  as 


214 


THE  POTATO 


carbon  hydrogen  and  oxygen,  decaying  or  de- 
cayed vegetable  matter,  dried  blood,  dried  meat, 
tankage,  fish,  garbage,  tannery  waste,  cottonseed 
and  linseed  meal,  guano,  animal  manures. 

(2)  Inorganic  (chemical  forms) — Ammonia  in 
combination  with  other  elements,  nitrate  of  soda, 
and  nitrate  of  lime  or  nitrolin  (a  new  Swedish 
product) . 

Phosphoric  acid  is  supplied  in  the  form  of  phos- 
phates of  lime,  iron,  and  alumina.  Some  of  the 
materials  used  are  bone  phosphate  (phosphate  of 
lime),  raw  bone,  bone  meal,  steamed  bone,  bone 
black  or  animal  charcoal,  bone  ash.  South  Caro- 
lina, Florida,  Canada  and  Tennessee  rock  phos- 
phates, iron  phosphate,  a  by-product  of  the  manu- 
facture of  iron  phosphatic  iron  ores,  and  super- 
phosphates (a  product  made  by  treating  some  of 
the  foregoing  elements  with  acid  to  make  readily 
available  or  soluble  phosphoric  acid). 

Fertilizers  should  be  purchased  on  a  per  pound 
basis  for  the  amounts  of  the  elements  actually 
contained.  The  fertilizer  that  costs  the  most  per 
ton  may  be  the  cheapest.  The  following  table 
shows  the  relative  amounts  of  the  elements  in 
various  combinations  and  is  used  in  checking  up 
guarantees : 


To  convert  the  guarantee  of 


Ammonia 
Nitrogen 
Nitrate  of  soda 
Bone  phosphate 
Phosphoric  acid 
Muriate  of  potash 
Actual  potash 
Sulphate  of  potash 
Actual  potash 


mto 

an 
equiv- 
alent 

of 


''  Nitrogen 
Ammonia 
Nitrogen 
Phosphoric  acid 
Bone  phosphate 
Actual  potash 
Muriate  of  potash 
Actual  potash 

,  Sulphate  of  potash 


Multiply 
by 

0.8235 

1.214 

0.1647 

0.458 

2.183 

0.632 

1.583 

0.54 

1.85 


THE  rOTATO  215 

It  is  often  best  to  buy  the  elements  singly,  and 
with  a  guarantee  as  to  the  contents  of  availal)le 
plant  food.  There  are  ways  of  manipulating 
mixtures  so  as  to  puzzle  the  buyer,  and  at  the 
same  time  permit  the  seller  to  keep  within  the  law. 
In  buying  combined  fertilizers  the  cost  of  mixing, 
handling,  and  advertising  must  always  be  added 
and  paid  for  by  the  buyer. 

In  order  to  maintain  and  build  up  virgin  fertility 
and  soil  condition  a  grower  should  be  continually 
adding  stores  of  vegetable  matter  and  such  mineral 
or  organic  elements  as  will  probably  be  depleted 
first.  The  latter  can  be  applied  in  forms  that  are 
available  at  once  or  in  less  soluble  forms  where  the 
usable  fertility  becomes  available  gradually. 

In  the  countries  of  Europe  where  the  best  results 
are  obtained,  and  in  this  country  where  growers 
have  given  the  most  careful  attention  to  the  busi- 
ness, the  highest  importance  is  placed  on  the  use 
of  the  decaying  root  systems  of  strong  growing 
plants  for  fertilizing  material  and  for  keeping  the 
soil  in  good  condition.  Sir  John  Lawes,  the 
eminent  British  farmer  and  experimenter,  said: 
"It  is  the  physical  condition  of  the  soil,  its  per- 
meability to  roots,  its  power  of  absorbing  and 
radiating  heat  that  is  of  more  importance  than  its, 
strictly  speaking,  chemical  composition." 

An  interesting  article  on  the  value  of  green 
manures  is  given  by  R.  W.  Thatcher  in  "Bulletin 
32"  of  the  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment 
Station.     It  follows: 

"Soil  is  a  mixture  of  inorganic  material — i.  e., 
rocks  or  mineral  substance  broken  down  into  more 
or  less  fine  particles — with  organic  matter — i.  e., 
decayed  or  decaying  material  which  has  once  been 


216  THE  POTATO 

living  vegetable  or  animal  tissue.  The  inorganic 
particles  usually  compose  the  greater  portion  of  the 
soil  (95  per  cent,  to  98  per  cent,  of  sandy  or  gravelly 
soils,  80  to  95  per  cent,  of  loams  and  clayey  soils, 
less  than  80  per  cent,  of  muck  or  peaty  soils)  and 
supply  the  necessary  mineral  elements  of  plant 
food.  The  organic  portion  of  the  soil  furnishes 
the  supply  of  nitrogen,  a  very  necessary  element 
of  plant  food,  without  which  no  crop  can  make 
any  growth ;  supplies  also  the  other  elements  which 
were  taken  up  in  the  growth  of  the  plant  or  animal 
and  which  bv  their  decav  are  returned  to  the  soil 
in  a  form  readily  available  for  plants;  helps  to 
render  the  mineral  elements  of  the  soil  avail-able 
by  the  action  upon  the  inorganic  matter  of  the 
acids  produced  in  the  decay  of  organic  matter; 
affects  very  beneficially  the  physical  properties  of 
the  soil,  increasing  its  ease  of  tilth,  moisture  hold- 
ing capacity,  capacity  to  absorb  heat,  and  decreas- 
ing the  tendency  to  'puddle'  when  wet  or  'bake' 
when  dry.  Too  much  organic  matter  usually 
results  in  a  soil  which  dries  out  very  rapidly  and 
w^hich  is  likely  to  be  'sour'  from  the  excess  of  or- 
ganic acids  which  it  contains.  Very  few%  if  any, 
well-drained  lands  contain  an  excess  of  organic 
matter,  however. 

"It  is  apparent,  therefore,  that  the  maintenance 
of  a  proper  balance  between  the  organic  and  the 
inorganic  or  mineral  portions  of  the  soil  is  one  of 
the  first  essentials  to  fertility  and  to  proper  physi- 
cal condition  of  the  soil.  Many  of  the  so-called 
'wornout'  soils  have  only  had  their  store  of 
organic  matter  depleted  by  improper  methods  of 
cropping  and  can  be  restored  to  fertile  condition 
by  the  plowing  under  of  some  additional  supply  of 
vegetation  to  decay. 


THE  POTATO  217 

*' Any  farm  crop  whicli  is  grown  for  the  sole  pur- 
pose of  plowing  it  under  to  increase  the  supply  of 
organic  matter  in  the  soil  is  known  as  a  'green 
manure.'  Green  manures  affect  the  soil  benefi- 
cially in  many  ways.  Some  of  the  possible  benefits 
are:  (1)  The  addition  of  vegetable  matter  or 
'humus,'  with  its  attendant  beneficial  effect  upon 
the  physical  and  chemical  properties  of  the  soil. 
(2)  Increasing  the  nitrogen  content  of  the  soil  by 
fixation  of  nitrogen  of  the  air,  when  leguminous 
crops  are  used  as  the  green  manure.  (3)  Using 
surplus  available  plant  food  which  might  other- 
wise be  lost.  (4)  Plant  food  from  lower  depths 
may  be  brought  nearer  to  the  surface  and  made 
available  for  subsequent  crops. 

"The  kind  of  crop  which  may  best  be  used  as  a 
green  manure  depends  upon  w  hich  one  or  more  of 
these  beneficial  effects  is  most  desired.  If  the 
addition  of  humus,  or  an  increased  supply  of  decay- 
ing vegetation,  is  the  only  necessity,  then  any  rank- 
growing  farm  crop  may  be  used.  The  more  suc- 
culent or  juicy  plants  are  best,  as  they  decay  much 
more  quickly  and  are  more  easily  incorporated  in 
the  soil.  If,  however,  the  supply  of  nitrogen  in  the 
soil  IS  small  and  its  increase  is  either  the  chief 
necessitj^  or  a  desirable  addition  to  the  increased 
humus  content,  then  some  leguminous  crop  must 
be  used,  as  no  other  farm  crop  has  the  power  of 
utilizing  atmospheric  nitrogen  or  of  returning  to 
the  soil  any  essential  element  of  fertility  which  it 
did  not  draw  from  it.  If  it  is  desired  to  bring  up 
from  below  some  of  the  mineral  plant  food  which 
is  present  in  deeper  layers  of  soil,  then  a  deep- 
rooting  crop  should  be  used. 

"The  legumes,  or  leguminous  crops,  are  a  group 
of  plants  which  are  characterized  by  growing  their 


218  THE  POTATO 

seed  in  pods  and  by  having  peculiar  knots  or 
nodules  on  their  roots.  These  nodules  are  formed 
by  the  action  of  a  certain  group  of  bacteria, 
immense  numbers  of  which  are  found  in  each 
nodule,  which  have  the  peculiar  property  of  being 
able  to  use  the  gaseous  nitrogen  of  the  air  for  their 
own  growth,  and  supplying  this  element  as  they 
die  and  decay  to  the  host  plant  on  whose  roots 
they  are  located.  Included  in  this  group  are  al- 
falfa, all  the  clovers,  vetches,  peas,  beans,  etc. 
No  other  group  of  plants  or  animals,  so  far  as  is 
now  known,  is  thus  able  to  make  use  of  atmospheric 
nitrogen.  Legumes  may  grow  in  soils  which  are 
rich  in  available  nitrogen  without  the  presence  of 
the  nodule-producing  bacteria,  deriving  their  ni- 
trogen supply  directly  from  the  soil  as  do  other 
crops,  but  have  the  distinctive  power  of  being  able 
to  flourish  in  soils  poor  in  nitrogen  if  the  proper 
bacteria  are  present  to  grow  upon  their  roots  and 
supply  them  with  nitrogen  from  the  air,  and  when 
so  grown  to  increase  the  supply  of  soil  nitrogen 
when  plowed  under  as  green  manures." 

The  potato  growers  of  the  Jersey  Islands  use  the 
following  mixture  at  the  rate  of  one  ton  per  acre 
in  addition  to  animal  manures,  etc. : 

1000  pounds  super-phosphate 

600       "  sulphate  of  ammonia 

300       "  sulphate  of  potash 

100       "  lime  dust  or  sulphate  of  lime 


2000  pounds 


William  D.  Hurd  states  that  in  Maine  "the 
most  common  and  popular  commercial  fertilizer 
used  for  potatoes  has  been  the  one  analyzing  4 


THE  POTATO  219 

per  cent,  ammonia,  6  per  cent,  available  phos- 
phoric acid,  10  per  cent,  potash,  and  costing  $37  to 
$39  a  ton.  The  following  materials  for  a  home 
mixture  would  duplicate  the  above  formula: 

150  pounds  nitrate  soda  (15  per  cent,  nitrogen). 
800        "       tankage  (7  per   cent,    ammonia,    15   per   cent, 
total,  10  per  cent,  available  phosphoric  acid). 
300  '       acid  phosphate  (15  per  cent,  phosphoric  iicidj. 

400        "       sulphate  potash. 

1650  pounds  (equivalent  of  a  ton). 

"The  above  material  can  be  purchased  f.o.b. 
Boston  at  the  following  prices:  Nitrate  of  soda 
$50  per  ton,  tankage  $27  per  ton,  acid  phosphate 
$16  per  ton,  sulphate  potash  $48  per  ton. 

"The  cost  of  this  mixture  w^ould  be  as  follows: 

150  pounds  nitrate  soda  at  $50 $  3 .  75 

800    "         tankage  at  $^27    .       .      .      .'    .      .      .  10.80 

300    "          acid  phosphate  at  $16 2.40 

400    "          sulphate  potash  at  $48 9.60 

Cost  of  material  f.o.b $26.55 

Labor  of  mixing,  waste,  sacking,  etc 75 

Total $27.50 


(( I 


To  this  must  be  added  the  cost  of  freight.  xVt 
most  Maine  points  this  would  not  be  over  $2 
to  $2.50  for  the  above  quantity.  A  saving  then 
of  about  25  per  cent,  can  be  made  by  home  mix- 
ing. 

"Many  Aroostook  County  growers  have  aban- 
doned the  4-G-lO  fertilizer  and  are  now^  using  one 
analyzing  5  per  cent,  ammonia,  8  per  cent,  available 
phosphoric  acid,  and  7  per  cent,  potash. 

"This  sells  at  $41  to  $42  a  ton  in  Aroostook 


220  THE  POTATO 

County.  Such  a  mixture  can  be  made  from  the 
following  materials,  using  tlie  same  grade  as  in  the 
4-6-10  mixture  given  above: 

200  poimus  nitrate  soda, 

980       *'  tanlvage, 

400       "  acid  phosphate. 

280       "  sulphate  potash. 


18G0  pounds  (equivalent  to  a  ton). 

Cost  f.o.b.  Boston,  $28.15.     Cost  of  mixing,  same 
as  before.     Freight  extra. " 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

THE    FARM    ROTATION 

THE  rotation  of  crops  is  a  fundamental 
practice  in  good  farming  operations.  The 
potato  is  one  of  the  most  useful  crops  in  a 
general  rotation,  because  the  clean  and  thorough 
cultivation  required, as  well  as  the  preliminary  deep 
plowing  and  the  digging,  puts  the  soil  in  excellent 
mechanical  condition. 

The  object  of  rotating  crops  is  to  grow  a  uniform 
maximum  product.  All  crops  benefit  by  a  change. 
The  fertility  requirements  of  no  two  are  exactly 
the  same.  A  soil  is  benefited  both  mechanically 
and  in  its  store  of  fertility  by  the  changing  of  crops. 
For  instance,  a  soil  may  have  plenty  of  the  essen- 
tial mineral  elements  of  fertility  to  last  for  gener- 
ations, but  the  amount  of  those  elements  available 
for  the  use  of  a  certain  pLait  might  be  exhausted 
by  a  few  years' continuous  cropping.  x\nother  crop 
would  require  different  elements  or  different 
amounts  or  forms  of  the  same  elements.  By  the 
time  the  first  crop  considered  would  be  grown 
again  on  this  land,  the  fertility  that  was  exhausted 
would  either  be  replaced  or  made  available  by  dif- 
ferent methods  and  conditions.  On  farms  where 
rotation  is  practised  diseases  are  avoided,  checked, 
or  controlled. 

The  maintenance  and  replacing  of  nitrogen  is 
one  of  the  most  important  soil  cultural  conditions. 
Humus  or  decayed  vegetable  matter  is  a  source  of 


222  THE  POTATO 

nitrogen.  Alfalfa,  clovers,  peas,  and  other  legumes 
grow  so  luxuriantly  in  many  localities,  and  place 
and  leave  such  large  amounts  of  fertility  in  the  soil, 
that  the  nitrogen  problem  consists  simply  of  grow- 
ing legumes  in  the  rotation.  The  keeping  of  live- 
stock and  the  return  of  manure  to  the  land  replace 
some  of  all  of  the  elements  to  the  soil  in  a  good 
combination. 

A  rotation  of  crops,  and  their  arrangement  as 
far  as  location  on  the  farm  is  concerned,  is  a  matter 
that  must  be  worked  out  for  the  requirements  of 
the  individual  holding. 

The  farmer  is  a  manufacturer.  He  directs  the 
growing  of  meat  and  dairy  products,  the  fruit, 
grain,  and  vegetable  crops  from  the  soil  and  other 
elements.  To  get  all  the  returns  from  the  business, 
he  must  have  no  waste,  and  the  by-products  must 
be  manufactured  into  some  marketable  form. 
His  unmarketable  potatoes  must  be  utilized  for 
feed  and  his  unmarketable  fruits  must  be  made 
into  cider,  vinegar,  or  jelly.  The  farmer  who 
makes  the  greatest  success  is  the  one  that  produces 
a  pound  of  beef,  a  pound  of  pork,  or  a  pound  of 
butter  the  cheapest.  To  do  this  he  must  know  the 
value  of  the  grain  and  the  hay  he  uses  in  producing 
them.  He  must  know  on  how  much  less  food  a 
year-old  animal  makes  a  pound  of  gain  than  a  two- 
year-old  animal.  He  must  know  how  much  food  it 
takes  for  a  pound  of  gain  for  a  steer  and  how  much 
for  a  hog.  He  must  know  how  to  market  to  the 
best  advantage  the  products  that  he  raises  on  his 
farm,  whether  directly  from  the  fields  or  as  meat, 
dairy  products  or  poultry,  or  as  draft  horses, 
pure  cattle,  hogs  or  sheep. 

There  is  no  *'best"  breed  of  horses,  no  "best" 
breed  of  cattle,  and  hkewise  no  "best"  kind  of 


THE  POTATO  223 

farming.  Successes  have  been  made  in  every  line 
and  successes  will  continue  to  be  made  in  every 
line  repeatedly.  No  farmer  cares  to  pursue  exactly 
the  line  followed  by  his  neighbors  nor  is  it  neces- 
sary. Individuality  is  just  as  marked  here  as 
elsewhere.  To  have  and  to  pursue  one  ideal  is  the 
essential  thing,  and  to  know  all  there  is  to  be  known 
about  it  is  a  large  part  of  the  equipment.  Success 
follows  knowledge  and  application. 

The  diversified  farm  is  a  farm  that,  having  a  rul- 
ing central  idea,  grows  a  rotation  of  crops  to  main- 
tain fertility,  supports  enough  and  the  proper 
kind  of  livestock  to  best  utilize  those  crops,  and 
furnishes  as  much  as  is  profitable  of  the  products 
necessary  for  maintenance  of  everything  on  that 
farm.  Any  one  of  the  component  parts  that  make 
up  a  diversified  farm  is  capable  of  being  a  specialty, 
but  the  combination  and  the  utilization  of  the 
waste  ends  make  diversity. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

EARLY  POTATOES SPECIALTIES 

THE  early  potato,  like  all  other  early  vege- 
tables and  fruit,  is  an  "out  of  season"  or 
*' semi-out  of  season"  product,  and  con- 
sequently brings  a  fancy  price. 

Extraordinary  conditions,  either  natural  or  arti- 
ficial, are  required  for  its  production. 

The  early  potato  is  a  specialty  suited  to  the 
colder  part  of  the  season  in  semitropical  countries, 
such  as  California,  Mexico,  Florida,  and  Texas. 

With  artificial  conditions  of  sprouting  and 
starting  the  crop,  a  large  industry  has  been  de- 
veloped in  Great  Britain  and  the  Channel  Islands 
during  the  past  ten  years. 

Protection  from  early  frosts  is  a  prime  con- 
sideration in  sections  where  the  climate  is  other 
than  strictly  semitropical.  There  are  great  pos- 
sibilities for  the  industry  in  the  Sacramento  Valley 
and  other  sections  of  California. 

One  great  advantage  of  an  early  crop  is  that  it 
is  matured  and  harvested  before  the  time  (August 
and  September)  when  the  blights  and  other  diseases 
may  ruin  the  late  crops. 

Some  work  has  been  done  by  American  experi- 
ment stations  in  investigating  the  business.  In 
"Farmers'  Bulletin  114"  of  the  United  States 
Department  of  Agriculture  is  the  following:  "A 
difference  of  two  or  three  days  or  a  week  in  the 
placing  of  a  crop  on  the  market  often  makes  a  dif- 

224 


THE  POTATO  225 

ference  between  profit  and  loss,  and  tlie  prices 
obtained  for  extra-early  crops  have  stimulated 
cultural  experiments  with  every  kind  of  fruit  and 
vegetables.  Some  interesting  results  along  this 
line  with  potatoes  have  recently  been  reported 
by  the  Kansas  and  Rhode  Island  stations. 

"At  the  Kansas  station  seed  tubers  of  four  dif- 
ferent varieties  of  medium-sized  potatoes  were 
placed  in  shallow  boxes  with  the  seed  ends  up  in 
February.  Tlicy  were  packed  in  sand,  leaving 
the  upper  fourth  of  the  tubers  exposed,  and,  the 
boxes  were  placed  in  a  room  with  rather  subdued 
light,  having  a  temperature  of  50  degrees  to  GO  de- 
grees F.  Vigorous  sprouts  soon  pushed  from  the 
exposed  eyes.  The  v/liole  potatoes  were  planted 
in  furrow^s  in  March  in  the  same  position  they  oc- 
cupied in  the  boxes.  The  same  varieties  of  po- 
tatoes taken  from  a  storage  cellar  were  planted 
in  parallel  rows.  The  sand-sprouted  potatoes  took 
the  lead  from  the  start  in  vigor  and  strength  of 
top  and  produced  potatoes  the  first  of  June,  a 
W'Cek  earlier  than  the  storage-cellar  potatoes.  At 
the  final  digging  they  showed  better  potatoes  and 
gave  a  10  per  cent,  larger  total  yield. 

''In  another  experiment  part  of  the  potatoes 
was  treated  the  same  as  in  the  first  test,  except 
that  the  sand  was  kept  moistened  and  the  other 
part  was  placed  in  open  boxes  and  kept  in  a  light 
room  having  a  temperature  of  50  degrees  F.  The 
tubers  placed  in  sand  developed  strong  sprouts 
and  nearly  all  rooted.  When  planted  in  the  field 
they  outstripped  both  the  tubers  sprouted  in  open 
boxes  and  the  storage-cellar  tul)ers  in  vigor  of 
growth.  The  tubers  started  in  the  open  boxes 
gave  earlier  yields  than  were  obtained  from  the 
storage-cellar    tubers,   but    not    as    early   as    the 


^26  THE  POTATO 

tubers  sprouted  in  moist  sand.  The  tubers 
sprouted  in  moist  sand  produced  table  potatoes 
from  seven  to  ten  days  earlier  than  the  storage- 
cellar  seed. 

*'At  the  Rhode  Island  station  medium-sized 
whole  potatoes  sprouted  on  racks,  in  a  fairly  warm 
and  light  room,  gave  a  27  per  cent,  better  yield 
at  the  first  digging  than  potatoes  kept  in  a  cold 
cellar  until  planting  time,  and  this  was  increased 
to  40  per  cent,  at  the  final  digging.  The  percent- 
age of  large  tubers  was  also  greater  at  each  dig- 
ging with  the  sprouted  tubers. 

"The  results  of  these  experiments  are  sugges- 
tive. The  handling  of  seed  potatoes  in  such  man- 
ner as  to  secure  strong,  stocky  sprouts  before 
the  tubers  are  planted  out  is  shown  to  be  an  im- 
portant factor  in  increasing  both  the  earliness  and 
the  total  yield  of  the  crop.  By  planting  only 
well-sprouted  seed  a  full  stand  is  assured. 

*'One  of  the  objections  to  this  method  of  grow- 
ing potatoes  is  the  large  amount  of  space  required 
for  exposing  the  tubers  to  the  light  for  sprouting. 
This  objection  has  been  overcome  in  part  by  the 
use  of  trays  and  racks.  At  the  Rhode  Island 
station  the  rack  used  held  nine  trays.  Each  tray 
was  three  and  three  fourths  feet  long  and  one  and 
one  half  feet  wide,  and  would  hold  about  one 
bushel  of  potatoes  when  spread  out  in  a  single 
layer  for  sprouting.  The  bottoms  of  the  trays 
were  made  of  pieces  of  lath  placed  about  one  inch 
apart.  Nine  trays  were  placed  in  a  rack  over 
each  other,  leaving  about  nine  inches  of  space  be- 
tween each  tray.  This  method  of  arrangement 
has  the  advantage  of  securing  a  very  uniform  dis- 
tribution of  light,  heat,  and  air  for  all  the  traj^s. 
It  greatly  facilitates  the  handling  of  the  potatoes 


K.   L.  Clcvflaiiil,    lloulloii.   Maine 


1% 


THE  POTATO  227 

and  lessens  the  danger  of  breaking  oflp  the  sprouts 
when  transferring  to  the  field  for  planting." 

Where  it  is  desired  to  grow  potatoes  on  heavy- 
lands  or  without  cultivation  tliey  are  sometimes 
planted  under  straw. 

In  a  Nebraska  Experiment  Station  publica- 
tion R.  A.  Emerson  says: 

*'  Potatoes  are  a  cool  weather  crop.  It  is  because 
of  this  that  they  succeed  so  well  in  the  far  north. 
Moreover,  potatoes  require  for  their  best  develop- 
ment fairly  uniform  conditions,  especially  as  re- 
gards soil  moisture  and  soil  temperature.  This 
being  the  case,  wh}^  should  not  potatoes  grown 
under  a  litter  mulch  be  especially  well  developed 
and  therefore  make  strong  seed?  The  soil  be- 
neath a  mulch  not  only  has  a  moderately  low 
temperature  during  sunnner,  but  its  temperature 
is  also  exceptionally  uniform,  varying  not  more 
than  a  degree  or  two  between  day  and  night  and 
only  a  few  degrees  from  day  to  day.  The  soil 
moisture  beneath  a  good  nuilch  is  also  more 
abundant  and  much  more  nearly  uniform  in 
amount  than  in  case  of  bare  ground,  even  though 
the  latter  is  given  good  tillage. 

*'The  value  for  seed  purposes  of  tubers  grown 
under  a  little  mulch  has  been  tested  during  two 
seasons  at  the  experiment  (Nebraska)  station. 
In  1904  a  plat  of  potatoes  was  mulched  with  straw 
and  an  adjoining  plat  was  given  careful  culti- 
vation. The  soil  of  the  two  plats  was  practically 
uniform  and  the  seed  planted  on  the  two  plats  was 
taken  from  the  same  lot  of  tuljers.  Seed  was 
saved  from  the  mulched  and  cultivated  j)lats  sep- 
arately, kept   under   the  same  conditions  during 


228  THE  POTATO 

winter,  planted  on  adjoining  plats  in  the  spring  of 

1905,  and  given  identical  cultivation  during  the 
summer.  In  1908  the  experiment  was  repeated 
with  seed  grown  in  mulched  and  in  cultivated 
ground  the  year  before.  The  same  precautions 
were  observed  as  in  the  first  test.  Uniform  seed 
was  used  to  start  vv^ith  in  1905.  The  seed  saved 
from  the  mulched  and  from  the  cultivated  plats 
was  taken  as  it  came,  without  selection,  and  was 
kept  over  winter  under  the  same  conditions. 
Both  kinds  of  seed  were  cut  in  the  same  way, 
planted  in  the  same  way,  on  adjoining  plats,  and 
treated  alike  as  regards  tillage,  spraying,  etc. 
Under  these  conditions  anv  constant  differences 
in  yield  between  the  two  plats  must  be  ascribed 
to  the  effect  of  the  methods  of  culture  employed 
the  previous  season.  The  yields  obtained  from 
the  mulched  and  from  the  cultivated  seed  were  as 
follows:  Cultivated  seed,  384  pounds  in  1905; 
mulched  seed,  563  pounds  in  1905;  cultivated  seed, 
123  pounds  in  190G;  mulched  seed,  174  pounds  in 
1906. 

"The  use  of  seed  that  has  been  grown  under  a 
mulch  the  preceding  year  increased  the  yield  of 
potatoes  47  per  cent,  in  1905  and  41  per  cent,  in 

1906.  If  further  tests  confirm  the  results  re- 
ported here  it  would  seem  that  mulching  might 
be  used  for  the  production  of  high-grade  seed 
potatoes  at  home.  Moreover,  mulching  usually 
results  in  increased  yields  if  properly  handled. 
Mulching  potatoes  on  a  large  scale  is,  of  course, 
impracticable,  but  most  farmers  could  easily 
mulch  enough  of  their  potato  field  to  produce  the 
seed  that  they  would  require  the  following  year, 
and  in  doing  so  they  would  not  necessarily  in- 
crease the  cost  of  production  per  bushel." 


THE  POTATO  229 


((I 


The  growini?  of  Irish  potatoes  as  a  truck  crop 
at  the  South  has  assumed  large  proportions,"  says 
L.  C.  Corbett,  horticulturist  in  charge  of  Arling- 
ton Experimental  Farm  and  Horticultural  In- 
vestigations of  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry,  U.  S. 
Department  of  Agriculture,  in  "Farmers'  Bulletin 
407."  "Thousands  of  acres  are  annually  planted 
to  early  varieties  of  potatoes  which  are  harvested 
as  soon  as  they  have  reached  suitable  size,  re- 
gardless of  their  maturity,  and  immediately  trans- 
ported to  Northern  cities  for  distribution  and  con- 
sumption. This  industry  extends  along  the  At- 
lantic seaboard  from  the  southernmost  terminals 
of  railway  transportation  to  the  vicinity  of  the 
great  centres  of  consumption,  Florida  producing 
a  large  annual  crop  of  early  potatoes,  followed  by 
Georgia,  South  Carolina,  North  Carohna,  Vir- 
ginia, Maryland,  and  New  Jersey  in  turn.  The 
great  early -potato-producing  sections  of  Florida 
are  centred  around  Hastings;  in  Georgia  the  sec- 
tions are  largelv  confined  to  the  vicinitv  of  Savan- 
nah;  in  South  Carolina  a  large  acreage  is  cul- 
tivated in  the  trucking  region  about  Charleston; 
in  North  Carolina  a  very  extensive  crop  is  planted 
in  the  vicinity  of  Wilmington;  while  Norfolk,  Va., 
probably  outclasses  all  other  regions  along  the* 
Atlantic  coast  so  far  as  acreage  and  yield  are  con- 
cerned. This  vicinity  is  one  of  the  oldest  and 
largest  early-potato-producing  sections  of  North 
America.  Besides  this  belt  of  country  devoted  to 
this  industry  there  are  isolated  regions  along  the 
Gulf  coast  and  in  northern  Texas,  Kentuckv,  and 
Missouri  where  potato  growing  has  been  es- 
tablished and  has  proved  quite  i)rofitable. 

*'It  is  impossible  to  give  accurate  statistics  in 
regard  to  this  crop,  for  it  changes  annually  with 


230  THE  POTATO 

the  markets  of  the  preceding  year,  those  who  en- 
gage in  the  industry,  particularly  in  the  West, 
being  influenced  very  decidedly  by  the  previous 
year's  return.  This  is  an  exceedingly  unfortunate 
condition,  as  the  growers  should  determine  their 
planting,  not  by  their  previous  year's  experience, 
but  by  the  condition  of  the  crop  at  the  North. 
The  crop  of  so-called  winter  potatoes  produced 
at  the  North  has  more  influence  upon  the  price 
which  will  be  received  for  the  early  crop  than  any 
other  single  factor.  The  truck  farmer  should 
therefore  keep  a  very  careful  record  of  the  crop  at 
the  North  preceding  the  year  his  planting  is  to 
be  done.  The  cpantity,  quality,  and  price  of  the 
held-over  Northern  crop  are  factors  which  de- 
cidedly influence  the  price  of  the  new  crop  when 
it  reaches  the  market.  A  market  w^hich  is  well 
stocked  with  old  potatoes  which  have  been  kept 
in  fairly  good  condition  means  a  very  low  price 
for  the  early  crop  when  it  comes  in  competition 
with  such  stock.  As  this  new  crop  cannot  be 
retained  long  in  the  soil  at  the  extreme  South  with- 
out rapid  deterioration,  neglect  on  the  part  of  the 
owner  to  determine  the  quantity  of  old  potatoes 
in  sight  at  planting  season,  as  compared  with  the 
normal  supply,  may  mean  a  very  meagre  profit, 
if  any,  or  a  very  heav;^^  loss  if  the  crop  cannot  be 
moved  at  the  proper  season  at  a  very  satisfactory 
price. 

*'In  growing  early  potatoes,  perhaps  more  than 
any  other  single  crop,  the  sources  from  which  the 
seed  is  obtained  influence  the  resulting  crop.  The 
practice  which  is  almost  universally  followed  is  to 
plant  tubers  of  early  varieties  which  have  been 
grown  for  several  seasons  at  the  North.  The  de- 
mand by  truck  farmers  for  Northern -grown  seed 


THE  POTATO  231 

has  developed  a  very  considerable  industry  in 
some  of  the  potato-producing  regions,  notably 
Maine,  Michigan,  and  Wisconsin.  Early  varieties 
which  are  especially  adapted  to  truck  work  at 
the  South  are  in  these  Northern  regions  planted 
extensively  for  the  purpose  of  producing  seed  to 
be  used  in  the  South.  The  crop  is  harvested  and 
placed  in  storage  houses  either  at  the  North  or  at 
the  South,  where  it  can  be  made  available  to  the 
growers  at  the  South  early  in  the  spring  to  meet 
the  demand  for  seed  for  early  planting. 

"Within  recent  years  there  has  been  a  marked 
increase  in  the  use  of  second-crop  potatoes  for 
seed  throughout  the  Southern  potato-growing 
sections.  This  crop  is  frequently  grown  on  the 
same  land  from  which  the  first  crop  of  potatoes 
was  harvested.  In  most  instances,  however,  it 
follows  beans  or  cucumbers,  as  the  seed  for  this 
second  potato  crop  is  not  usually  planted  until 
July  or  August.  The  seed  for  this  crop  is,  as  a 
rule,  saved  from  the  early  crop,  the  small  tubers 
being  stored  in  a  well-ventilated  shed,  where  they 
are  protected  from  the  direct  action  of  the  sun 
and  from  storms  until  about  ten  days  or  two 
weeks  before  the  time  of  planting,  when  they  are 
spread  thinly  upon  the  ground  and  lightly  covered 
with  straw  or  litter  to  partially  protect  them  from 
the  sun.  Under  these  conditions  the  tubers 
quickly  'green'  and  all  those  suitable  for  seed 
will  develop  sprouts.  As  soon  as  the  sprouts  are 
visible,  and  before  they  are  large  enough  to  be 
rubbed  off  in  handling,  the  potatoes  are  ready  to 
plant.  The  product  of  this  planting  gives  a  crop 
of  partially  matured  tubers  which  are  held  over 
winter  for  spring  planting.  This  practice  gives 
excellent  results  in  many  localities  and  is  found  to 


232  THE  POTATO 

be  more  economical  than  the  purchase  of  Northern- 
grown  seed.  To  what  extent  it  is  safe  to  follow 
this  practice  without  renewing  the  seed  from  the 
North  by  the  use  of  fully  matured  tubers  has  not 
been  determined. 

"A  novel  practice  for  securing  quick  growth 
from  second-crop  seed  has  been  developed  by  a 
successful  potato  grower  in  Texas.  Mr.  Morrell 
has  developed  an  idea  which  is  closely  akin  to  the 
practices  of  the  potato  growers  of  the  Channel 
Islands.  The  method  consists  in  storing  the 
tubers  of  the  second  crop  in  a  tight  building,  which 
by  the  use  of  artificial  heat  can  be  kept  frostproof. 
At  harvest  time  the  tubers  are  placed  in  slatted 
crates  and  the  temperature  of  the  storage  house 
held  as  low  as  practicable  without  freezing  until 
four  to  six  weeks  before  planting  time,  when  the 
temperature  is  raised  to  68  degrees  or  70  degrees 
F.  This  temperature  is  maintained  until  the  eyes 
of  the  potatoes  show  activity.  The  sprouts 
should  not  be  allowed  to  develop  to  any  con- 
siderable length  before  planting  the  tubers,  on 
account  of  the  danger  of  breaking  them  in  the 
necessary  handling  at  planting  time.  If  the 
sprouts  are  one  eighth  of  an  inch  or  less  in  length 
there  should  be  little  loss  from  handling.  If  the 
house  can  be  well  lighted  at  the  time  the  tempera- 
ture is  raised  the  sprouts  which  develop  will  be 
much  stouter  than  those  developed  in  the  dark. 
This  plan  provides  a  congenial  temperature  for 
the  germination  of  the  tubers  and  makes  it  pos- 
sible to  delay  planting  until  outside  conditions 
are  generally  favorable  for  the  rapid  growth  of  the 
plants,  and  to  use  for  seed  only  those  tubers  which 
are  actually  viable.  With  good  preparation  and 
cultivation    this    method    should    give    a    perfect 


THE  POTATO  233 

stand  and  a  decidedly  increased  yield,  together 
^vith  the  e.'irly  maturity  of  the  crop. 

"This  plan  has  been  used  for  Northern-grown 
seed,  but  it  is  found  that  the  mature  Northern- 
grown  seed  responds  more  quickly  to  a  given  heat 
stinuilus  and  consequently  does  not  require  to  be 
placed  in  a  warm  room  more  than  ten  days  to  two 
weeks  before  planting. 

"The  practice  on  the  Channel  Islands  accom- 
plishes the  same  results  in  a  slightly  different 
manner.  The  tubers  are  placed  one  layer  deep 
on  germinating  trays  which  are  arranged  on  racks 
or  are  provided  with  comer  posts  a  few  inches 
long  so  as  to  admit  air  and  light.  The  tubers  are 
induced  to  germinate  in  the  traj^s,  and  at  planting 
time  only  those  with  well-developed  sprouts  are 
used  for  planting.  As  the  work  is  all  done  by 
hand  there  is  little  danger  of  damage  to  the  seed 
from  breaking  off  the  sprouts.  In  all  sections  of 
the  South  where  hand  planting  is  practised  this 
method  of  procedure  is  perfectly  practicable,  and 
would  entirely  obviate  losses  from  poor  stands 
resulting  from  uncongenial  conditions  due  to  cold, 
damp  spring  weather,  and  inferior  seed.  Planting 
could  be  delayed  until  conditions  were  favorable 
and  poor  seed  would  be  detected  before  it  was 
planted. 

"Early  potatoes  grown  as  market-garden  or 
truck  crops  and  intended  for  immediate  con- 
sumption are,  as  a  rule,  harvested  as  soon  as  they 
have  reached  marketable  size,  regardless  of  the 
maturity  of  the  crop.  Because  of  the  immature 
condition  of  the  tubers  it  is  essential  that  the  crop 
be  handled  carefullv  and  quicklv.  The  tender 
tubers  are  easily  bruised  and  diimngod  in  ap- 
pearance; consequently  care  should   he  exercised 


234  THE  POTATO 

in  the  conduct  of  all  operations  connected  with 
the  harvesting  of  this  crop.  As  a  further  safe- 
guard to  loss  from  bruising  at  harvest  time  or 
during  transit  the  growers  and  the  trade  have 
determined  upon  the  red-skinned  varieties  as 
best  adapted  to  withstand  these  misfortunes. 
Scars  and  bruises  show  less  on  red-skinned  than 
on  white-skinned  sorts. 

"The  varieties  in  most  common  use  among 
truckers  are  known  as  Irish  Cobbler,  having  a 
white  skin,  and  Bliss  Triumph,  a  red-skinned  sort. 

"Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  red-skinned 
sorts  handle  better,  the  smaller  yield  usuall}^  ob- 
tained from  such  varieties  has  led  all  growers  ex- 
cept those  located  at  extreme  distances  from  the 
market  to  use  white-skinned  sorts.  Red  varieties 
are  not  employed  extensively  along  the  Atlantic 
coast,  although  they  make  up  the  bulk  of  the  crop 
grown  in  the  Gulf  Coast  States. 

"While  the  harvesting  of  early  Irish  potatoes 
grown  for  home  consumption  is  largely  carried  on 
by  hand,  in  some  localities  improved  implements, 
such  as  potato  diggers  and  potato  sorters,  are 
brought  into  service.  The  truck  farmers  along 
the  Atlantic  coast,  however,  adhere  largely  to  the 
simpler  methods  of  handling  the  crop,  as  sug- 
gested in  figures  9  and  10.  This  is  undoubtedly 
accounted  for  bv  the  fact  tliat  labor  is  more  abun- 
dant  and  not  so  w^ell  trained  in  the  use  of  improved 
machinery  as  in  the  more  northern  and  western 
districts.  In  digging  early  potatoes  in  the  Atlantic 
coast  district  ordinary  one-horse  turning  plows  are 
used.  Laborers  follow  the  plows  and  gather  the 
potatoes  from  the  soil  and  throw  them,  four  or  six 
rows  together,  in  piles,  after  which  they  are  sorted 
and  put  into  barrels  for  shipment.     In  the  potato 


THE  POTATO  235 

regions  of  Louisiana  and  Texas,  where  early  pota- 
toes form  a  crop  of  considerable  importance,  im- 
proved machinery  is  largely  depended  upon  for 
harvesting. 

"The  packages  for  early  potatoes  are  determined 
partly  by  custom  and  the  demands  of  the  market, 
but  largely  by  the  local  timber  supply.  In  regions 
where  timber  is  plentiful  and  barrels  and  crates 
figure  largely  in  the  shipment  of  other  truck  crops, 
potatoes  are  chiefly  shipped  in  barrels.  In  other 
localities  burlap  sacks  are  chiefly  employed,  as  is 
the  case  in  most  regions  growing  late  potatoes. 

"Up  to  the  present  time  no  standard  measure, 
barrel,  or  bag  for  the  handling  of  potatoes  has  been 
adopted.  Recently  certain  states  have  passed 
laws  requiring  that  these  packages  should  come  up 
to  a  given  standard,  usually  170  pounds  net  for  a 
barrel,  and  that  all  short-measure  packages  enter- 
ing their  markets  should  be  so  marked.  The 
barrel  used  by  the  trucker  of  the  Atlantic  coast 
region  during  past  years  holds  about  11  pecks  and 
weighs  from  155  to  1G5  pounds  net.  These  barrels 
cost  the  grower  about  22  cents  each,  including  the 
burlap  cover.  The  bags  used  for  the  handling  of 
the  crop  grown  in  the  southwestern  region  cost  the 
grower  about  5  cents  each  in  lots  of  1,000  or  more. 
These  packages  are  used  but  once  and  are  not 
returned  to  the  grower. 

"The  grading  of  early  potatoes  is  quite  as  im- 
portant as  the  grading  of  fruits.  I^arge  and  small 
tubers  should  not  be  mixed  in  the  same  barrel. 
The  pickers  should  be  taught  to  gather  the  large 
and  merchantable  tubers  in  one  basket  and  the 
small  or  seed  potatoes  in  another,  and  these  if 
placed  upon  the  market  should  go  in  separate 
receptacles  and  be  clearly  marked  so  as  to  repi'i^- 


236  THE  POTATO 

sent  the  grade.  If  a  mechanical  sorter  is  used  this 
work  will  be  more  effectively  accomplished  than  if 
left  to  the  pickers. 

"The  type  of  grade  usually  used  is  similar  to 
that  employed  in  some  sections  for  grading  apples 
and  peaches,  although  the  common  type  of  potato 
grader  is  a  rotary  screen  which  separates  the  earth 
from  the  tubers  and  allows  the  small  tubers  to  fall 
through  the  large  meshes  of  the  screen  before 
reaching  the  general  outlet  which  carries  away 
those  of  merchantable  size.  The  objection  to  a 
mechanical  grader  of  this  type  is  that  it  bruises 
the  immature  tubers  and  renders  them  somewhat 
less  attractive  than  when  not  so  handled  and  prob- 
ably also  shortens  the  length  of  time  they  can  be 
safely  held  on  the  market." 


CHAPTER  XX 

THE    BURBANK    POTATO 

FOR  several  years  the  authors  of  this  book 
have  looked  upon  their  occasional  visits 
to  Luther  Burbank  at  Santa  Rosa,  Cal. 
as  bright  spots  in  their  year's  work.  Each 
visit  brings  a  greater  love  for  the  genial,  kindly, 
wonderful  man  and  a  greater  admiration  for  his 
marvelous  work  in  plant  breeding  —  the  like  of 
which  the  world  has  never  before  known.  He  is 
both  a  genius  and  a  philanthropist,  and  the  value 
of  his  life  work  to  the  world  will  probably  never  be 
given  a  correct  rating. 

The  Burbank  potato  is  in  a  class  by  itself  on  the 
Pacific  coast.  In  discussing  the  potato  situation 
in  California,  Mr.  Burbank  said: 

"I  suppose  the  Russians,  who  had  a  trading  post 
on  the  coast  of  what  is  now  Sonoma  County,  may 
have  grown  potatoes,  but  the  first  potatoes  in 
the  state  of  which  we  have  any  record  were  those 
brought  by  sailors  from  Chile,  South  America. 
That  it  was  possible  for  them  to  be  used  on  the 
slow-sailing  vessels  of  seventy -five  years  ago  shows 
that  they  were  good  keepers. 

""This  Chilean  potato  was  grown  on  the  shores 
of  Bodega  Bay  in  Sonoma  County  and  came  to  be 
known  as  the  '  Bodega  Red. '  It  was  a  red  potato, 
with  heav>^  eyebrows  and  deep  eyes,  and  wlien  piled 
in  the  field  and  ccnered  with  vines  would  keep  for 

237 


238  THE  POTATO 

two  years.  It  was  very  subject  to  blight,  however, 
and  a  field  of  growing  potatoes  might  be  wiped  out 
by  the  disease  in  a  few  days.  At  that  time  it  was 
thought  that  potatoes  could  not  be  grown  in  the 
interior  valley  of  California." 

It  was  not  until  the  introduction  of  the  Burbank 
that  large  acreages  of  potatoes  were  grown  in 
California. 

On  one  of  our  visits  to  Mr.  Burbank  he  told  us 
the  story  of  the  Burbank  potato,  and  although 
busy  with  the  thousands  and  thousands  of  plants 
involved  in  the  bringing  out  of  new  and  improved 
varieties,  and  with  the  writing  of  the  history  of 
his  life's  work,  he  has  written  the  following  for 
this  book: 

"In  the  summer  of  1871,  after  I  had  had  several 
years  of  amateur  experience  in  raising  seedling 
potatoes,  I  was  on  the  lookout  for  some  potato 
which  did  not  reproduce  itself  almost  exactly  from 
the  seed  in  form,  size,  color,  and  all  other  particu- 
lars, as  did  most  of  the  potatoes  then  known. 
While  searching  for  such  a  variety,  I  happened, 
that  autumn,  to  find  on  my  place  a  single  seed-ball 
on  an  Early  Rose  potato  vine,  and  was  immediately 
impressed  with  what  later  proved  to  be  the  fact, 
that  this  must  be  something  valuable,  as  the  Early 
Rose  very  seldom  bears  seed-balls.  It  was  watched 
with  the  utmost  care  until  nearly  ripe,  my  atten- 
tion being  upon  it  daily.  When  it  was  about 
mature  and  ready  to  pick,  the  patch  was  visited 
that  morning  with  that  intention,  but  to  my  great 
consternation  the  coveted  fruit  had  disappeared, 
and  the  pain  and  disappointment  were  intense 
when,  after  a  careful  search,  I  was  unable  to  find 


THE  POTATO  239 

any  trace  of  it.  However,  believing  tliat  it  might 
be  somewhere  in  the  vicinity,  day  after  day  the 
place  was  visited,  and  the  most  diligent  search 
made,  moving  the  vines  about  and  leaving  nothing 
undone  that  might  disclose  it.  At  Lxst  it  was 
found  a  number  of  feet  away  from  the  original 
vine,  no  doubt  removed  either  by  a  bird  or  some 
animal  passing  rapidly  through  the  field. 

"From  this  single  seed-ball  twenty-six  distinct 
new  varieties  were  obtained.  The  seed  was 
planted  out  of  doors,  as  one  would  plant  beets  or 
cabbages,  and  not  grown  in  boxes  under  glass  and 
transplanted  as  seedlings  of  potato  and  tomato 
plants  usually  are.  The  ground  had  been  pre- 
pared with  as  much  care  as  could  be  bestowed  upon 
it,  and  each  seed  was  placed  about  a  foot  from  its 
next  neighbor  in  the  rows.  To-day  I  would  not 
think  of  planting  valuable  potato-seeds  in  this 
way  because  the  risks  would  be  too  great;  but  it 
turned  out,  perhaps  from  the  unusual  care  given 
them,  that  they  all  grew  well,  and  from  that  lot  of 
seedlings  varieties  were  obtained  entirely  distinct 
from  any  which  had  before  been  seen.  There  were 
two  sorts  with  long,  white,  beautiful  tubers,  the 
most  shapely,  most  uniform  in  size,  of  any  that 
had  yet  been  developed.  One  of  these  was  after- 
ward named  and  introduced  as  the  'Burbank'  by 
that  pioneer  seedsman,  Mr.  J.  H.  Gregor^^  of 
Marblehead,  Mass.  The  other  white  one  was 
almost  as  good,  but  by  careful  test  proved  to 
be  somewhat  less  prolific.  This,  and  all  the  others 
except  the  '  Burbank, 'are  now  lost  to  cultivation, 
and  let  us  hope  without  loss  to  the  cultivator. 

"Besides  the  two  seedlings  above  mentioned, 
one  variety  was  bright  red,  not  very  productive, 
and  most  of  the  tubers  decayed  shortly  after  they 


240  THE  POTATO 

were  dug.  Another  was  a  round,  white  potato: 
still  another  was  pink ;  a  second  pink  variety  was 
characterized  by  its  white  eyes;  another  pinkish 
variety  had  eyes  so  prominent  that  the  long,  slen- 
der tubers  seemed  to  be  all  eyebrows,  the  eyes 
reaching  quite  to  the  centre  of  the  potato.  Prob- 
ably seedlings  raised  from  some  of  these  might 
have  produced  varieties  of  great  importance,  but 
soon  after,  in  moving  to  California,  the  seed  was 
lost.  I  have  raised  more  than  ten  thousand  seed- 
lings from  the  'Burbank'  potato  since  coming  to 
California,  but  have  never  obtained  one  that  was 
equal  in  all  respects  to  the  original. 

"Over  eight  million  bushels  of  the  Burbank 
potato  were  produced  on  the  Pacific  coast  alone 
during  1906,  and  probably  nearly  as  many  each 
year  for  fifteen  or  twenty  years  past.  It  is  the 
standard  tuber  on  this  coast  to-day  from  Alaska  to 
Mexico,  and  almost  invariably  brings  the  highest 
price  of  all  potatoes.  It  thrives  as  well  here  to-day 
as  it  did  in  Massachusetts  thirty-five  years  ago. 
This  is  one  of  the  proofs  that  varieties  do  not  run 
out  if  grown  under  suitable  environments. " 


CHAPTER  XXI 

THE    SWEET    POTATO 

THE  article  which  follows  consists  of  extracts 
from  "Farmers'  Bulletin  324"  of  the 
United  States  Department  of  Agriculture, 
and  is  by  W.  R.  Beattie  of  the  Bureau  of  Plant 
Industry : 

"With  the  passing  of  each  year  the  sweet  potato 
is  becoming  of  greater  importance  as  a  commercial 
truck  crop  in  the  United  States.  During  a  long 
period  it  has  formed  one  of  the  principal  sources  of 
food  for  the  people  of  the  Southern  States  and  of 
tropical  America.  As  a  commercial  truck  crop  the 
sweet  potato  would  be  included  among  the  five  of 
greatest  importance,  ranking  perhaps  about  third 
in  the  list.  As  a  food  for  the  great  mass  of  the 
people  living  in  the  warmer  portions  of  our  country 
the  use  of  this  crop  is  exceeded  by  hominy  and  rice 
only.  In  many  of  the  islands  of  the  Pacific,  espe- 
cially in  the  Philipj)ines,  the  sweet  potato  is  the 
principal  vegetable  food  for  large  numbers  of  the 
lower  classes,  at  certain  seasons  being  almost  the 
only  food  available. 

"The  sweet  potato  industiy  in  this  country  is 
readily  divided  into  two  classes  of  production:  (1) 
For  home  use  and  (2)  for  market.  A  quantity 
sufficient  for  home  use  can  be  grown  under  a  wide 
range  of  conditions,  wliiW  production  on  a  com- 
mercial scale  is  somewhat  restricted  by  climate  and 

241 


242  THE  POTATO 

soil  and  also  by  market  and  transportation  facil- 
ities. The  larger  Eastern  markets  are  now  well 
supplied,  but  there  are  sections  where  the  people 
have  not  as  yet  become  accustomed  to  the  use  of 
sweet  potatoes  in  large  quantities.  The  field  for 
the  production  and  use  of  sweet  potatoes  is  very 
broad,  and  this  crop  promises  to  become  of  more 
general  farm  importance. 

*'In  view  of  the  constantly  increasing  interest  in 
sweet  potatoes  it  is  the  purpose  of  this  bulletin  to 
give  simple  cultural  directions  covering  their  pro- 
duction both  for  home  use  and  for  market,  includ- 
ing the  soil  and  its  preparation,  the  propagation 
of  the  plants,  planting,  harvesting,  storing,  and 
marketing,  together  with  the  uses  of  sweet  potatoes 
for  stock  feeding  and  for  similar  purposes. 

"The  sweet  potato  is  of  a  tropical  nature,  its 
original  home  probably  being  the  West  Indies  and 
Central  America.  The  true  sweet  potato,  as  we 
have  it  growing  in  the  United  States,  belongs  to  the 
morning-glory  family,  its  botanical  name  being 
Ipomoea  botatas.  Throughout  the  Southern 
States  the  sweet  potatoes  having  moist  flesh  are 
commonly  known  as  'y^^^s'  and  those  having 
dry  flesh  as  sweet  potatoes.  The  name  'yam'  is 
misleading  and  properly  belongs  to  a  distinct  class 
of  plants  that  are  confined  almost  entirely  to  the 
tropics. 

"Owing  to  the  tropical  nature  of  the  sweet 
potato  it  naturally  thrives  best  in  the  South  Atlan- 
tic and  Gulf  Coast  States,  but  it  may  be  grown  for 
home  use  as  far  north  as  southern  New  York  and 
westward  along  that  latitude  to  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains. The  areas  suited  to  commercial  production 
extend  from  New  Jersey  southward  and  westward 
to  Texas,  and  are  found  again  in  the  central  valleys 


THE  POTATO  243 

of  California.  In  the  Mississippi  Valley  the  com- 
mercial area  extends  as  far  north  as  the  southern 
part  of  Iowa,  Illinois,  and  Indiana.  The  region 
around  Louisville,  Ky.,  is  noted  for  excellent  crops 
of  sweet  potatoes. 

"Sweet  potatoes  thrive  on  a  moderately  fertile 
sandy  loam  which  does  not  contain  an  excess  of 
organic  matter.  They  are  frequently  grown  upon 
almost  pure  sand,  especially  where  the  subsoil  is  a 
yellow  clay.  Soils  containing  considerable  cal- 
cium or  underlain  with  limestone  are  well  adapted 
to  the  growing  of  the  crop.  The  sweet  potato  is 
exceptional  in  that  a  fairly  good  crop  can  be  grown 
upon  soils  that  are  too  poor  for  the  production  of 
the  majority  of  farm  crops.  Sweet  potatoes  yield 
a  fair  crop  on  the  'wornout'  tobacco  and  cotton 
lands  of  the  South,  especially  when  used  in  a  rota- 
tion including  some  leguminous  crop  for  increasing 
the  humus  in  the  soil. 

"The  more  common  varieties  of  the  sweet  potato 
have  for  a  gi^eat  many  years  been  propagated  by 
cuttings,  or  sets,  taken  either  from  the  potatoes 
themselves  or  from  growing  vines,  and  as  a  result 
the  plants  have  ceased  to  flower  and  produce  seed. 
The  greater  portion  of  the  commercial  crop  is 
grown  from  sets,  or  'draws,'  produced  by  sprout- 
ing medium-sized  potatoes  in  a  warm  bed  of  soil. 
In  the  Southern  States  the  seed  potatoes  are  fre- 
quently cut  into  pieces  in  the  same  manner  as  Irish 
potatoes  and  planted  in  the  row  where  they  are  to 
mature.  Where  several  plants  appear  in  one  hill 
they  are  thinned,  and  those  removed  are  used  for 
planting  other  land.  In  the  South  Atlantic  and 
Gulf  Coast  States  the  sweet  potato  is  frequently 
propagated  by  making  vine  cuttings.  A  compar- 
atively small  bed  of  seed  potatoes  is  planted  quite 


244  THE  POTATO 

early  and  the  sets  so  produced  are  used  to  plant  a 
small  patch  from  which  vine  cuttings  are  taken 
later  by  the  cartload  for  planting  large  fields.  In 
the  southern  parts  of  Florida  and  Texas  and  on  the 
South  Sea  Islands  the  potatoes  may  remain  in  the 
soil  from  year  to  year,  being  dug  only  as  required 
for  use,  those  remaining  over  producing  the  sets 
for  the  following  season's  planting. 

^"In  the  warmer  portions  of  the  sweet-potato- 
growing  district  the  seed  should  be  bedded  when 
danger  of  frost  has  passed.  In  the  northern  por- 
tion of  the  area  the  seed  should  be  placed  in  the 
hotbed  from  the  20th  of  March  to  the  10th  of 
April,  after  the  temperature  of  the  bed  has  fallen 
to  80  degrees  or  85  degrees  F.  and  become  regular. 
"As  a  general  rule  sweet-potato  plants  are  set  in 
the  field  shortly  after  a  rain.  In  order  to  avoid 
delay  in  planting,  the  hands  should  begin  to  get 
out  the  sets  as  soon  as  the  rain  ceases  falling  and 
place  them  in  crates  or  baskets  ready  for  transpor- 
tation to  the  field.  The  sets  are  not  all  produced 
at  once,  and  only  those  that  have  formed  good 
roots  are  '  drawn, '  the  others  being  left  until  later. 
In  '  drawing '  the  sets  the  seed  potato  is  held  down 
with  one  hand  while  the  plants  are  removed  with 
the  thumb  and  finger  of  the  other  hand.  It  often 
happens  that  five  or  six  plants  will  cling  together 
at  the  base,  and  these  should  be  separated  in  order 
to  avoid  loss  of  time  in  the  field.  Where  plants 
are  to  be  set  with  a  transplanting  machine  it  is 
essential  that  they  should  be  in  the  best  possible 
shape  in  order  that  they  may  be  handled  rapidly 
by  the  boys  who  feed  the  plants  into  the  machine. 
The  roots  should  all  be  kept  in  one  direction,  and 
if  the  tops  are  long  or  irregular  they  may  be 
trimmed  off  even  by  means  of  a  knife. 


THE  POTATO  245 

*'T\TiiIe  *  drawing'  the  sets  it  is  a  good  plan  to 
have  at  hand  a  large  pail  or  a  tub  containing  water 
to  which  there  has  been  added  a  quantity  of  clay 
and  cow  manure  which  has  been  stirred  until  it 
forms  a  thin  slime.  As  the  plants  are  pulled  from 
the  bed  they  are  taken  in  small  bunches  and  their 
roots  dipped  into  this  mixture.  This  process, 
termed  'puddling,'  covers  the  roots  with  a  coating 
which  not  only  prevents  their  becoming  dry  in 
handling  but  insures  a  direct  contact  with  the  soil 
when  they  are  planted  in  the  field  or  garden. 

"The  success  of  the  crop  depends  largely  upon 
the  way  in  which  the  plants  start  after  being 
removed  from  the  bed  and  set  in  the  field  or  garden. 
Practical  growers  always  plan  to  set  the  plants 
during  a  '  season '  or  period  w  hen  the  conditions  are 
suitable  to  a  quick  start  into  growth,  either  just 
before  a  rain  or  as  soon  afterward  as  the  soil  can  be 
worked.  The  method  of  setting  will  depend  en- 
tirely upon  local  conditions  and  the  acreage  to  be 
grown,  the  essential  features,  however,  being  to 
get  the  roots  in  contact  with  moist  earth  and  the 
soil  firmly  pressed  about  the  plants. 

"The  use  of  water  around  the  roots  of  the  plants 
is  desirable  under  most  circumstances,  as  it  not 
only  moistens  the  soil  but  assists  in  settling  it  about 
the  roots.  A  large  quantity  of  water  is  not  neces- 
sary, one  half  pint  to  each  plant  being  generally 
considered  sufficient. 

"Where  level  culture  is  practised,  the  plants  are 
set  from  24  to  30  inches  apart  in  each  direction. 
On  the  eastern  shore  of  Virginia  the  greater  portion 
of  the  crop  is  planted  '24  inches  apart  each  way, 
requiring  about  11,000  plants  to  an  acre.  By 
planting  30  inches  apart  each  way,  only  about 
7,000  plants  are  required  to  set  one  acre.     Where 


246  THE  POTATO 

the  crop  is  grown  on  ridges  it  is  customary  to  have 
the  ridges  from  36  to  42  inches  apart  from  centre 
to  centre  and  to  place  the  plants  14  to  18  inches 
apart  in  the  row.  By  this  method  an  acre  will 
require  from  8,000  to  12,500  plants.  An  acre  of 
good  sweet  potato  land  will  readily  support  9,000 
to  11,000  plants,  and  the  number  most  commonly 
planted  by  the  several  methods  will  fall  within 
these  figures. 

"The  machine  transplanters  are  provided  with  a 
spacing  device  which  indicates  the  distance  be- 
tween plants;  also  with  a  row  marker  to  show  the 
location  of  the  next  row. 

*' Where  a  few  hundred  plants  are  to  be  grown 
for  home  use,  or  if  only  an  acre  or  two  are  to  be 
planted,  the  hand  method  of  planting  will  answer 
every  requirement.  A  trowel  or  a  dibble  is  used 
for  opening  the  soil  to  receive  the  plant,  and  the 
earth  is  closed  about  the  roots  by  a  second  thrust 
with  the  implement,  or  the  heel  of  the  shoe  is  used 
to  press  the  earth  about  the  plant.  For  hand 
planting,  the  plants  are  dropped  ahead  of  the 
'dibblers'  by  boys  and  girls.  Seven  thousand  to 
ten  thousand  plants,  or  an  acre,  is  an  excellent 
day's  work  for  a  planter  when  everything  is  in  good 
condition.  Where  a  few  hundred  plants  are  set 
in  the  garden  it  is  always  desirable  to  water  them 
before  closing  the  earth  about  the  plant. 

"Under  reasonably  favorable  conditions  a  ma- 
chine will  plant  from  three  to  four  acres  a  day.  In 
addition  to  being  labor  savers,  these  machines  do 
the  work  better  and  more  uniformly  than  it  is  or- 
dinarily done  by  hand.  The  plants  can  be  set 
without  the  use  of  water,  but  the  results  are  more 
satisfactory  where  the  water  is  used. 

"The  methods  of  handUng  a  crop  of  sweet  pota- 


THE  POTATO  247 

toes  do  not  differ  materially  from  those  employed 
with  ordinary  farm  and  garden  crops. 

"Aside  from  planting  and  harvesting,  the  work 
of  caring  for  a  crop  of  sweet  potatoes  can  be  done 
almost  entirely  by  the  use  of  ordinary  farm  and 
garden  tools. 

"The  sweet  potato  is  subject  to  injury  from  a 
number  of  diseases.  Those  diseases  causing  rot 
and  decay  are  most  prevalent  and  result  in  the 
greatest  loss  during  the  period  that  the  crop  is  held 
in  storage,  Occasionally,  however,  the  crop  may 
be  lost  before  harvesting,  and  one  form  of  rot, 
known  as  black-rot,  destroys  the  young  plants, 
attacks  the  potatoes  while  they  are  in  the  ground, 
and  causes  them  to  decay  while  in  storage.  The 
spores  that  are  responsible  for  the  several  forms  of 
rot  affecting  sweet  potatoes  may  remain  in  the  soil 
from  year  to  year,  or  they  may  be  carried  over 
winter  upon  the  seed.  Diseases  are  generally 
introduced  with  affected  seed  or  plants,  and  when 
once  established  in  the  soil,  the  storehouse,  or  the 
propagating  bed  it  is  doubtful  whether  they  can 
be  eradicated  except  by  the  adoption  of  the  most 
thorough  methods. 

"A  disease  known  as  stem-rot  causes  the  stem 
of  the  plant  to  begin  to  die  at  the  surface  of  the 
ground.  This  decay  gradually  extends  downward 
to  the  potatoes  and  frequently  kills  the  entire 
plant. 

"The  diseases  kno\\Ti  as  soft-rot,  dry-rot,  and 
white-rot  are  all  similar  in  their  method  of  attack 
to  the  black-rot.  One  form,  known  as  soil-rot, 
causes  the  loss  of  the  crop  while  it  is  in  the  field. 
Each  of  these  diseases  is  caused  by  a  particular 
fungus,  but  has  received  the  common  name  sug- 
gested by  its  general  appearance  or  some  marked 


248  THE  POTATO 

characteristic.  Any  one  of  the  diseases  of  the 
sweet  potato  may  be  present  without  causing  se- 
vere loss  provided  conditions  are  unfavorable  to  its 
development,  and  growers  should  be  constantly 
on  their  guard  to  prevent  the  spread  and  develop- 
ment of  diseases. 

"A  system  of  crop  rotation  by  which  the  land 
will  not  be  planted  to  sweet  potatoes  oftener  than 
every  four  or  five  years  is  the  first  step  toward 
disease  control.  Care  in  the  selection  and  keeping 
of  potatoes  intended  for  propagation  is  of  impor- 
tance, while  clean  cultivation  and  proper  handling 
at  the  time  of  harvesting  are  essential.  Diseases 
will  generally  make  their  first  appearance  upon  cut, 
broken,  or  bruised  potatoes,  and  all  that  are  in  any 
respect  injured  should  be  stored  separately  from 
the  seed  and  perfect  stock.  The  storage  house 
should  be  cleaned  and  fumigated  with  sulphur  or 
formalin  before  storing  begins,  and  all  crates  or 
baskets  used  for  handling  the  crop  should  be  in  the 
house  during  the  fumigation. 
,  *'  It  is  very  apparent  that  some  varieties  are  more 
subject  to  the  attacks  of  diseases  than  others. 
The  Big-Stem  Jersey  and  the  Jersey  group  gen- 
erally are  especially  subject  to  disease,  while  va- 
rieties of  the  Hayman  group,  such  as  Southern 
Queen,  are  seldom  aifected. 

*'The  sweet  potato  is  reasonably  free  from  the 
ravages  of  insects.  Cutworms  frequently  destroy 
the  young  plants  after  they  are  set  in  the  field, 
especially  when  the  land  has  been  in  grass  the 
previous  season.  The  sw^eet-potato  borer,  which 
works  in  the  roots,  is  widely  distributed  and  causes 
considerable  injury  in  the  Gulf  Coast  States.  A 
small  insect  known  as  thrips  works  on  the  under 
side  of  the  leaves  during  the  hot  and  dry  weather  of 


THE  POTATO  240 

midsummer,  but  as  a  rule  the  real  damage  caused 
by  this  insect  is  slight. 

"The  harvesting  and  marketing  of  sweet  pota- 
toes direct  from  the  field  begin  about  the  middle 
of  August  and  continue  until  the  crop  is  all  dis- 
posed of  or  placed  in  storage  for  winter  marketing. 
During  the  early  part  of  the  harvesting  season  the 
yield  is  light,  but  as  a  rule  the  prices  paid  are  good. 
The  supply  for  home  use  and  those  potatoes  that 
are  to  be  kept  in  storage  should  not  be  dug  until 
just  before  frost.  In  the  localities  where  frosts  do 
not  occur  until  quite  late  in  the  season  the  sweet 
potatoes  ripen  and  the  vines  show  a  slight  tinge  of 
yellow  when  ready  for  handling. 

"The  foliage  of  the  sweet  potato  is  very  tender 
and  is  easily  injured  by  frost.  A  light  frosting  of 
the  leaves  will  do  no  harm,  but  should  the  vines 
become  frozen  before  digging  they  should  be  cut 
away  to  prevent  the  frozen  sap  passing  down  to 
the  roots  and  injuring  them. 

"In  sorting  sweet  potatoes  preparatory  to  pack- 
ing, about  four  grades  are  recognized  —  i.  e.,  fancy, 
primes,  seconds,  and  culls.  Those  packed  as  fancy 
include  only  the  most  select,  both  in  size  and  shape. 
The  primes  include  all  those  adapted  to  general 
first-class  trade,  while  the  seconds  include  the 
smaller  and  more  irregular  stock  which  goes  to  a 
lower-priced  trade.  The  culls  are  not  marketed 
unless  good  stock  is  exceedingly  scarce,  and  as  a 
rule  are  used  for  feeding  to  hogs. 

"Sweet  potatoes  are  usually  shipped  in  barrels 
holding  eleven  pecks  each.  Some  markets  require 
that  the  barrels  be  faced  and  headed,  while  for 
others  the  tops  are  slighth^  rounded  and  covered 
with  burlap.  Small  lots  of  extra -fancy  sweet  po- 
tatoes are  sometimes  shipped  in  one-bushel  crates 


250  THE  POTATO 

having  raised  tops;  also  in  patent  folding  crates. 
Throughout  the  process  of  handling  care  must  be 
exercised  to  see  that  the  sweet  potatoes  do  not 
become  bruised,  for  upon  this  their  shipping  and 
keeping  qualities  greatly  depend. 

"Unlike  most  perishable  products,  the  sweet 
potato  requires  warmth  and  a  dry  atmosphere 
w^hile  in  storage.  The  method  of  storing  will 
depend  both  upon  the  locality  and  the  quantity  of 
potatoes  to  be  cared  for.  The  temperature  and 
conditions  of  a  rather  cool  living  room  are  admira- 
bly adapted  for  keeping  sweet  potatoes  intended 
for  home  use  in  the  North,  while  in  the  South  they 
may  be  placed  in  j^its  or  stored  in  outdoor  cellars. 
The  home  supply  may  be  placed  in  crates  and 
stored  in  a  loft  over  the  kitchen  part  of  the  dwell- 
ing. Sweet  potatoes  should  not  be  stored  in  bags 
or  in  barrels  without  ventilation. 

"Where  large  quantities  of  sweet  potatoes  are 
stored  for  winter  marketing,  the  method  employed 
in  the  Southern  States  is  to  place  them  in  outdoor 
pits  and  cellars,  while  at  the  North  some  form  of 
heated  storage  house  will  be  required.  Whether 
the  storage  be  in  pit,  cellar,  or  house,  a  dry,  warm 
atmosphere  with  ventilation  is  essential  to  good 
keeping. 

"Of  the  large  number  of  varieties  of  the  sweet 
potato  there  are  not  more  than  ten  that  are  now  of 
great  commercial  importance  in  the  United  States. 
For  the  markets  that  require  a  dry,  mealy-fleshed 
potato  those  varieties  belonging  to  the  Jersey 
group  are  suitable.  For  the  Southern  trade  and 
where  a  moist-fleshed  potato  is  desired  those  com- 
monly designated  as  yams  are  in  demand.  Among 
the  Jerseys  that  are  extensively  grown  are  the  Big- 
Stem  Jersey,  the  Yellow  Jersey,  and  the  Red  Jer- 


THE  POTATO  251 

sey.  The  principal  varieties  of  the  yam  group  are 
the  Southern  Queen,  the  Pumpkin  Yam,  the  Geor- 
gia, the  Florida,  and  the  Ked  Bermuda.  Of  the 
varieties  mentioned  there  are  a  large  number  of 
special  strains  known  under  many  local  names. 

"In  the  selection  of  varieties  for  home  use  one 
must  be  governed  largely  by  locality.  As  a  rule 
those  of  the  Jersey  group  will  thrive  farther  north 
than  those  of  the  so-called  yam  types.  For  market 
purposes  the  particular  variety  or  strain  grown  in 
the  vicinity  should  first  be  selected,  and  afterward 
other  varieties  may  be  experimented  with  in  a 
small  way. 

"The  following  brief  descriptions  of  a  few^  of  the 
leading  varieties  may  be  of  assistance  in  selecting 
those  best  adapted  to  various  conditions  of  soil 
and  climate: 

''Big-Stem  Jersey. —  This  variety  is  the  most 
popular  among  growers  who  are  supplying  the 
Northern  and  Eastern  markets.  It  is  a  form  of  the 
Yellow  Jersey,  having  been  selected  for  its  pro- 
ductiveness and  dry,  yellow  flesh.  The  vines  are 
slender  and  long;  the  potatoes  are  of  spindle  shape 
and  inclined  to  grow  rather  large;  color  of  potatoes 
yellow;  color  of  flesh  light  yellow  or  deep  cream. 
While  this  variety  yields  heavily,  it  is  unfortu- 
nately a  rather  poor  keeper,  and  its  flesh  is  inclined 
to  become  dry  and  'punky'  toward  spring.  It 
will  thrive  well  toward  the  north,  but  is  better 
adapted  for  use  as  a  commercial  variety  than  for 
home  consumption. 

''Southern  Queen,  or  Hayman. —  The  vines  of 
this  variety  are  strong  and  vigorous;  the  potatoes 
are  large,  thick,  and  blunt  at  ends  or  of  short 
spindle  shape;  the  color  is  white  or  light  cream, 
while  the  flesh  is  of  cream  color,  becoming  darker 


252  THE  POTATO 

in  cooking,  moist,  and  very  sweet.  This  variety 
is  most  extensively  grown  for  market  purposes 
where  a  sweet,  moist-fleshed  potato  is  demanded. 
The  Southern  Queen  yields  well,  is  an  excellent 
keeper,  and  is  adapted  for  both  marketing  and 
stock  feeding  and  for  home  use  in  the  South  Atlan- 
tic and  Gulf  Coast  States,  but  it  does  not  mature 
when  grown  in  the  extreme  North. 

*' Red  Bermuda. —  The  Red  Bermuda  vines. are 
large  and  vigorous.  The  potatoes  are  usually 
large  and  overgrown  with  heavy  ridges  and  veins. 
The  color  of  the  potatoes  is  rose  red;  flesh,  creamj^; 
quality  fair  but  not  so  sweet  as  Southern  Queen. 
This  variety  is  a  heavy  cropper  and  suitable  for 
feeding  to  stock.  It  is  one  of  the  few  so-called 
yams  which  thrive  in  the  northern  portion  of  the 
sweet  potato  area. 

''Black  Spanish,  or  'Nigger  Choker.*  —  The 
Black  Spanish  vines  are  very  long,  vigorous,  and 
dark  purple  in  color.  The  potatoes  are  long, 
cylindrical,  crooked,  or  bent;  dark  purple  in  color, 
with  snowy  white  flesh  and  poor  quality.  This 
variety  is  grown  mostly  for  stock  feeding. 

*'  Shanghai. —  The  vines  of  the  Shanghai  variety 
are  large  and  vigorous;  the  potatoes  long,  cylindri- 
cal; the  outside  color  almost  white.  The  flesh  is 
creamy  white,  becoming  darker  in  cooking.  When 
baked  the  flesh  is  somewhat  dry  and  mealy  and  the 
flavor  rather  poor.  This  variety  yields  fairly  well 
and  is  adapted  for  use  as  stock  food  in  the  Gulf 
Coast  States. 

"The  cost  of  growing  an  acre  of  sweet  potatoes 
will  vary  with  the  cropping  plan  and  the  extent  to 
which  the  crop  is  grown.  On  an  average  the  cost 
of  growing  an  acre  of  sweet  potatoes  in  the  regular 
commercial  district  is  about  as  follows:  Rental  of 


THE  POTATO  253 

land,  $8;  plowing  and  fitting,  $5;  fertilizers,  $20; 
10,000  plants,  $10;  planting,  $5;  cultivating,  $5; 
digging  and  marketing,  $25;  total,  $78.  An  aver- 
age yield  of  sweet  potatoes  is  at  the  rate  of  one 
barrel  to  100  hills,  or  100  barrels  to  an  acre.  The 
price  per  barrel  paid  the  grower  is  seldom  less  than 
$1.25,  and  $2.50  or  $3  is  not  uncommon.  During 
good  seasons  the  net  profit  from  one  acre  of  sweet 
potatoes  is  about  $75.  While  occasionally  the 
net  returns  are  from  $100  to  $150  an  acre  for  a 
single  season,  there  are  seasons  of  crop  failure  or 
overproduction  when  very  Httle,  if  any,  profit  is 
realized. 

"The  sweet-potato  growers  on  the  eastern  shore 
of  Virginia  as  a  rule  plant  about  ten  acres  in  sweet 
potatoes,  and  this  constitutes  their  money  crop. 
The  remainder  of  the  cleared  portion  of  their  small 
farms  is  devoted  to  corn,  pasture,  and  hay,  all  for 
home  use.  Here  the  sweet-potato  crop  is  grown 
almost  entirely  without  the  aid  of  hired  help,  and 
the  cost  of  production  does  not  exceed  $40  an  acre. 
Where  the  crop  is  stored  the  gross  returns  are 
greater,  but  the  cost  of  production  is  increased 
proportionately. " 


CHAPTER  XXII 

LEGISLATION 

THE  control  and  eradication  of  all  disease 
—  human,  animal,  and  vegetable — is  a 
problem  in  which  all  of  the  people  in  a 
country  or  a  state  are  vitally  interested.  Con- 
sequently, laws  designed  to  accomplish  this  must 
be  made  by  the  highest  legislative  bodies.  No 
matter  how  well  the  individual  grower  may  do 
his  part,  unless  there  is  concerted  action,  enforced 
by  the  law,  little  headway  can  be  made  in  pre- 
venting or  combating  contagious  diseases. 

As  an  industry  gains  prominence  either  by  its 
growth  or  the  ability  and  public-spiritedness  of 
the  men  interested  in  it,  it  is  better  able  to  secure 
such  laws  as  are  necessary  for  its  protection. 

An  example  of  this  is  the  result  of  the  work  of 
the  Commissioner  of  Horticulture  in  California. 
The  men  interested  in  the  fruit  industry  in  this 
state  demand  protection  from  foreign  insect  and 
fungous  pests  that  may  be  introduced  to  be  a 
menace  to  the  fruit  interests  of  the  state,  and  in- 
spectors are  stationed  at  every  port  of  entry  to 
inspect  importations. 

The  potato  industry  in  various  sections  needs 
similar  protection.  The  Colorado  beetle  has  not 
yet  been  introduced  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains. 
The  states  or  parts  of  states  that  are  now  free 
from  this  pest  should  take  steps  to  prevent  its 
introduction. 

254 


THE  POTATO  255 

A  very  bad  pest  is  now  prevalent  in  Europe  — 
the  wart  disease  (black  scab).  There  should  be 
a  law  to  prevent  this  from  getting  a  foothold  in 
iVmerica.  The  following  letter  was  written  by 
the  senior  author  to  Secretary  of  Agriculture  James 
Wilson  from  London,  England,  May  28,  1910: 

*'I  am  getting  along  very  well,  and  am  securing 
information  invaluable  to  the  American  potato 
grower  about  the  various  stages  of  potato  pro- 
duction. 

"There  is  little  or  no  manufacture  of  farina 
from  potatoes  in  Great  Britain;  all  waste  and  low 
priced  potatoes  are  cooked  and  fed  to  meat  making 
livestock,  but  I  have  information  that  Germany 
is  making  flour  from  potatoes,  and  later  I  shall  visit 
there. 

"I  am  in  very  close  touch  with  the  Department 
of  Agriculture  here,  the  seed  potato  breeders  and 
growers,  the  commercial  growers,  and  the  market 
men. 

*'I  am  sending  you  a  leaflet  from  the  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture  of  Great  Britain  on  the  black 
scab  disease  of  potatoes.  Some  of  the  office  men 
tell  me  that  it  is  inconsequential,  that  the  disease 
has  been  prevalent  for  fifteen  or  twenty  years, 
and  it  has  affected  potato  growing  to  but  very 
little  extent.  Some  of  the  field  men  tell  me  that  it 
has  been  developing  very  rapidly  in  the  last  two 
years,  but  especially  so  the  last  year.  They  regard 
it  as  a  very  dangerous, if  not  the  very  worst, menace 
that  the  potato  industry  has  ever  had. 

"We  spent  a  day  with  the  potato  work  at  Sut- 
ton &  Sons,  Reading,  England,  with  Mr.  Lasham, 
a  Scotchman.  He  has  been  their  expert  and  po- 
tato specialist  for  thirty  years.     They  are  doing 


^5Q  THE  POTATO 

more  in  the  way  of  breeding  new  types  and  growing 
more  seed  potatoes,  and  selling  and  exporting  more, 
than  any  other  firm  in  the  world. 

"Mr.  Lasham  showed  us  samples  of  potatoes  in 
the  various  stages  of  black  scab  disease.  When  I 
looked  at  the  potato  and  then  when  they  were  cut 
open  it  made  me  shudder  with  horror.  Mr.  Las- 
ham  considers  it  more  damaging  and  far  reach- 
ing in  its  results  to  the  potato  industry  than  any- 
thing of  its  kind  that  has  ever  appeared.  He 
says  it  takes  eight  years  of  grass  crops  to  eradicate 
it  from  the  soils  when  the  fungus  once  invades  it. 

"Mr.  Rogers  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture 
in  London  says  they  do  not  regard  it  as  very  seri- 
ous, as  it  is  not  breeding  very  rapidly,  but  calls 
the  attention  of  the  potato  growers  in  the  bulle- 
tins of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  of  Great 
Britain  to  the  hea\^  penalties  for  not  reporting  it 
to  the  Department.  There  are  penalties  for  ship- 
ping any  such  diseased  potatoes,  however.  Mr. 
Rogers  admits  that  they  have  it  in  Newfoundland, 
and  that  it  is  developing  quite  rapidly  the  last 
year  or  two  in  Germany,  Belgium,  Roumania, 
Hungary,  and  other  potato  districts  of  Europe. 
A  few  instances  are  known  in  Scotland,  but  it  is 
the  worst  in  Wales. 

"Mr.  Rogers  very  kindly  invited  me  to  go  with 
their  experts  throughout  the  infected  districts 
during  the  month  of  August,  when  the  disease 
makes  its  greatest  development. 

"In  my  judgment  it  has  not  been  given  very 
wide  publicity  in  Europe,  as  it  would  endanger  the 
export  trade.  I  believe  the  disease  is  much  more 
malignant  than  we  have  a  knowledge  of,  and  that 
it  will  be  a  greater  menace  to  the  American  farmer  if 
once  estabhshed  in  the  United  States  or  on  the 


THE  POTATO  257 

farms  of  our  country  than  any  of  the  infectious 
or  contagious  diseases  of  the  Hvestock  industry. 
Steps  should  be  taken  before  this  year's 
crop  is  harvested  to  prohibit  the  importation 
of  potatoes  to  America  from  any  of  the  infected 
districts  of  Europe.  All  of  the  vessels  plying 
between  Europe  and  the  United  States  use  foreign 
grown  potatoes,  and  it  would  be  very  easy  for 
those  potatoes  to  get  ashore,  and  it  is  also  easy 
for  emigrants  to  take  seed  stocks  with  them. 

*'I  feel  that  I  am  your  personal  representative 
over  here  in  the  potato  industry^  and  I  am  sure 
that  with  this  full  information  you  wull  do  all  in 
your  power  to  protect  the  American  potato  grower 
from  the  chances  of  the  introduction  of  this 
disease,  just  as  you  have  protected  the  livestock 
grower  from  the  animal  diseases  of  the  countries 
of  Europe." 

Following  up  this  important  work  the  senior 
author  brought  the  matter  to  the  attention  of 
Senator  Guggenheim  of  Colorado,  who,  on  April 
6,  1911,  introduced  the  following  bill  in  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States: 

"To  enable  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture  to  more 
effectually  suppress  and  prevent  the  spread  of 
diseases  of  potatoes  known  as  black  scab  and 
wart  disease,  and  for  other  purposes. 

^^  Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of 
Representatives  of  the  United  States  of  America 
in  Congress  assembled.  That  in  order  to  enable 
the  Secretary  of  Agriculture  to  effectually  sup- 
press and  extirpate  diseases  of  potatoes  known 
as  black  scab  and  wart  disease,  and  to  prevent 
the  spread  of  such  diseases,  the  Secretary  of 


258  THE  POTATO 

Agriculture  is  hereby  authorized  and  directed, 
from  time  to  time,  to  estabhsh  such  rules  and 
regulations  concerning  the  importation  from 
foreign  countries  to  the  United  States  and  trans- 
portation into  and  through  any  state  or  ter- 
ritory of  the  United  States,  including  the 
District  of  Columbia,  as  he  may  deem  neces- 
sary, and  all  such  rules  and  regulations  shall 
have  the  force  of  law.  Whenever  it  shall 
appear  to  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture  that  any 
potatoes  grown  in  an  infested  country,  district, 
department,  or  locality,  outside  of  the  United 
States,  are  being  or  are  about  to  be  imported  into 
the  United  States,  or  the  District  of  Columbia, 
and  such  potatoes  are  infested  by  wart  disease 
or  black  scab,  he  shall  have  authority  to  quaran- 
tine against  such  importations  from  said  coun- 
try, district,  department,  or  locality,  and  prevent 
the  same  until  such  time  as  it  may  appear  to 
him  that  any  such  wart  disease  or  black  scab 
has  been  exterminated,  when  he  may  withdraw 
the  quarantine. 

"Sec.  2.  That  when  any  shipment  of  potatoes 
imported  or  brought  into  the  United  States  is 
found  to  be  infested  with  wart  disease  or  black 
scab  the  entire  shipment  shall  be  destroyed  in 
such  manner  as  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture 
may  direct. 

"Sec.  3.  That  upon  complaint  or  reasonable 
ground  on  the  part  of  the  Secretary  of  Agri- 
culture to  believe  that  any  potatoes  grown  with- 
in the  United  States  and  likely  to  become  sub- 
ject to  interstate  commerce  are  infected  with 
wart  disease  or  black  scab,  the  Secretary  of 
Agriculture  shall  cause  the  same  to  be  inspected 
by  a  qualified  expert,  and,  if  need  be,  placed 


THE  POTATO  259 

under  quarantine  until  such  infection  is  re- 
moved. 

"Sec.  4.  That  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture 
shall  have  authority  to  make  such  regulations 
and  take  such  measures  as  he  may  deem  proper 
to  prevent  the  introduction  or  dissemination  of 
black  scab  and  wart  disease  in  potatoes  from  a 
foreign  country  into  the  United  States  or  from 
one  state  or  territorv  of  the  United  States  or 
District  of  Columbia  to  another,  and  to  seize, 
quarantine,  and  dispose  of  any  potatoes  so  in- 
fected coming  from  an  infectd  foreign  country, 
district,  department,  or  locality  to  the  United 
States,  or  from  one  state  or  territory  or  the 
District  of  Columbia  in  transit  to  another  state 
or  territory  or  the  District  of  Columbia  when- 
ever in  his  judgment  such  action  is  advisable 
in  order  to  guard  against  the  introduction  or 
spread  of  such  diseases. 

"Sec.  5.  That  any  person,  company,  or  cor- 
poration knowingly  violating  the  provisions  of 
this  Act,  or  the  orders  or  regulations  made  in  pur- 
suance thereof,  shall  be  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor, 
and  on  conviction  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine 
of  not  less  than  one  hundred  dollars  nor  more 
than  one  thousand  dollars,  or  by  imprisonment 
of  not  more  than  one  year,  or  by  both  such  fine 
and  imprisonment. 

"Sec.  6.  That  the  sum  of  twenty -five  thousand 
dollars,  to  be  immediately  available,  or  so  much 
thereof  as  may  be  necessary,  is  hereby  appro- 
priated, out  of  any  moneys  in  the  Treasury  not 
otherwise  appropriated,  to  carry  into  effect  the 
provisions  of  this  Act." 

It  is  a  sad  commentaiy  on  American  legislative 


260  THE  POTATO 

affairs  that  this  bill  was  not  made  a  law.  The 
part  which  applies  to  potatoes  was  attached  to  an 
omnibus  bill  covering  all  parts  of  nursery  stock. 

The  bill  was  opposed  by  importers  of  nursery 
stock,  who  do  not  want  to  be  bothered  with  an 
inspection  that  will  protect  the  American  grower 
from  foreign  pests. 

x\s  drawn  up  by  the  attorney  for  the  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture,  a  trifling  mistake  occurred 
—  so  that  when  it  was  read  Congressman  Mann 
of  Illinois  made  a  funny  speech  calling  attention  to 
this  error.  The  bill  was  then  held  up,  and  the 
American  potato  grower  is  without  protection. 

The  legislative  end  of  farm  affairs  has  been 
badly  neglected  in  the  past,  but  with  increasing 
interest  in  agriculture  this  should  be  remedied 
in  the  immediate  future. 

Following  up  this  matter  during  the  winter  of 
1911-1912,  further  consideration  was  secured  in 
Congress,  and  a  bill  prohibiting  the  importation 
of  all  kinds  of  diseased  farm  produce  and  nursery 
stock  has  been  introduced. 

During  this  past  winter,  however,  many  mil- 
lions of  bushels  of  potatoes  from  Europe  have 
been  imported,  and  a  bulletin  has  been  sent  out 
warning  against  the  use  of  these  foreign  potatoes 
for  seed. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 

COOKING    THE    POTATO 

IN  CHAPTER  II   the   potato  as  food  is  dis- 
cussed by  Dr.  J.  H.  Kellogg. 
In  this  chapter  the  food  value  of  the  potato 
and  special  recipes  are  given  by  Mrs.  E.  H.  Grubb, 
and  valuable  recipes  are  also  given  by  Miss  Lenna 
F.  Cooper  and  Mr.  Emil  Tenthorey. 
The  following  is  by  Mrs.  E.  H.  Grubb: 

"There  are  many  varieties  of  potatoes,  and 
tastes  differ  as  to  a  choice.  In  America  and  Great 
Britain  the  white  fleshed,  mealy  varieties  are  pre- 
ferred. In  Continental  European  countries  many 
yellow  fleshed  varieties  are  in  great  favor,  such 
potatoes  being  especially  valuable  for  soups, 
ragouts,  salads,  and  hash,  as  they  are  of  a  waxy 
texture  and  retain  their  shape  better  when  cooked 
than  those  of  a  mealv  texture.  The  vellow  fleshed 
potato  is  said  to  contain  more  protein  in  propor- 
tion to  the  starch  content  than  the  white  fleshed 
and  is  therefore  richer  in  flavor. 

"The potato  is  a  food  rich  in  starch,  which  sup- 
plies the  body  with  fuel  for  keeping  up  warmth  and 
provides  it  with  energy  necessary  for  muscular 
activity. 

"The  food  value  and  composition  of  rice  and 
potatoes  are  very  nearly  the  same,  the  dift'erence 
being  that  potatoes  contain  a  larger  percentage  of 
juice,    while   the    rice    is    dry    and    concentrated. 


262  THE  POTATO 

Potatoes  are  so  easily  and  quickly  prepared  and 
may  be  served  in  such  a  variety  of  ways  that  they 
add  variety  to  the  daily  meal.  Their  mineral 
matter  is  valuable  in  the  processes  of  digestion. 
They  are  easily  grown  and  yield  abundantly,  and 
their  keeping  qualities  are  excellent.  These  ad- 
vantages place  them  at  a  price  within  the  reach 
of  all  in  the  localities  where  they  can  be  grown. 
Often,  when  old  potatoes  are  out  of  the  market, 
new  ones  are  so  high  in  price  as  practically  to  be 
out  of  reach  of  those  of  ordinary  means.  It  is 
well  known  that  so  much  of  a  necessity  is  the  po- 
tato considered  that  many  families  sacrifice  to 
obtain  them  at  the  exorbitant  prices  new  potatoes 
bring  in  Northern  markets;  also  in  the  South  the 
same  condition  occurs  later  in  the  season  when  po- 
tatoes are  scarce  and  high  priced.  These  facts 
go  to  prove  the  popularity  of  potatoes  in  the  diet. 
"As  dried  or  evaporated  potatoes  become  bet- 
ter known  they  will  supply  the  poorer  people  with 
this  much-prized  vegetable  at  a  cost  within  their 
reach.  The  composition  of  such  evaporated  po- 
tatoes is  much  the  same  as  the  original.  While 
the  flavor  and  in  some  cases  the  appearance  does 
not  equal  that  of  fresh  potatoes,  they  may  be  pre- 
pared in  all  the  appetizing  ways  of  the  fresh  ones, 
and  are  most  acceptable  when  the  fresh  potatoes 
are  too  high  in  price  to  be  easily  obtained.  Evap- 
orated or  dried  potatoes  should  be  as  common  in 
our  markets  as  the  dried  fruits  that  are  such  a 
welcome  addition  to  our  supply  of  food  when  the 
fresh  ones  are  high  priced  or  out  of  the  market. 
Even  in  some  of  our  largest  potato-grov\'ing  states, 
especially  in  the  Mississippi  Valley,  potatoes  often 
have  very  poor  keeping  qualities,  and  the  average 
farmer  finds  himself  short  or  entirely  without  this 


THE  POTATO  263 

vegetable,  and  the  city  people  of  moderate  means 
must  inconveniently  economize  in  the  use  of  po- 
tatoes or  do  without  this  article  of  diet.  At  such 
times  a  heavy  demand  would  be  made  for  desic- 
cated or  evaporated  potatoes  were  they  common 
in  our  markets. 

"Potatoes  for  storing  for  future  use  should  be 
firm  and  crisp  wdien  cut  open  with  the  knife. 
The  quality  can  only  be  definitely  tested  by  cook- 
ing. This  test  is  best  made  by  boiling  in  the  skins 
or  baking.  After  removing  from  the  fire  hold  in 
a  napkin  and  squeeze  lightly,  then  break  open, 
and  if  the  starch  is  abundant^  you  have  a  white, 
flaky,  uniform  mass  somewhat  sliiny  and  crystal- 
line in  appearance.  If  the  starch  is  sciinty  it  will 
be  soggy  and  may  have  a  watery  core.  This 
condition  may  be  discovered  in  the  i*aw  potato  by 
cutting  a  thin  slice  transversely  from  the  middle 
of  the  tuber.  Hold  it  up  to  the  light,  and  if  the 
core  is  large  and  many  large  arms  bninch  out  into 
the  outer  section,  and  the  outer  ring,  known  as 
the  cortical  layer,  is  thin,  sucli  a  potato  is  not 
Hkely  to  be  light  and  flaky  when  cooked.  There 
is  another  quality  of  the  potato  which  is  neither 
soggy  nor  mealy,  and  which  is  very  agreeable  to 
most  tastes,  and  is  commonly  described  as  waxi- 
ness.  This  quality  is  found  in  the  immature  tu- 
bers or  early  spring  potatoes.  In  point  of  flavor 
there  is  as  much  difference  as  in  texture.  The 
immature  potatoes  contain  a  larger  proportion  of 
albumenoids  that  gelatmize  in  cooldng,  giving 
this  moist  consistency,  and  the  larger  proportion 
of  acids  and  mineral  matter  gives  the  richness  of 
flavor.  In  selecting  potatoes  for  the  table  it  is 
a  very  difficult  matter  to  judge  the  quality  b\' 
the  outside  appearance.     A  good,  firm  potato  of 


^64  THE  POTATO 

fine,  smooth  skin  might  not  be  superior  in  quahty 
to  one  of  rough  and  uneven  character.  It  is  un- 
usual for  the  purchaser  to  be  fastidious  in  regard 
to  flavor  and  quahty,  and  yet  these  are  elements 
worthy  of  more  attention  than  color,  size,  or  form. 
Very  large  potatoes  have  a  large  watery  core,  or, 
as  is  said  in  the  kitchen,  a  bone,  in  the  centre. 
They  are  apt  to  be  coarse  grained  and  lacking  in 
flavor. 

"Excepting  in  cases  of  necessity  no  one  lives 
upon  potatoes  alone.  They  are  under  ordinary 
circumstances  eaten  with  meat,  fish,  eggs,  butter, 
milk,  and  cheese,  and  digestive  experiments  prove 
that  in  these  combinations  their  nutritives  are 
very  completely  utilized  in  the  body.  Their 
abundant  mineral  matters  are  valuable  aids  in  the 
process  of  digestion,  and  are  supposed  tx)  be  a  pre- 
ventive of  scurvy.  So  well  recognized  was  this 
property  dm*ing  the  Civil  War,  and  before  the 
nutritive  value  of  foods  had  been  scientifically 
learned,  tliat  potatoes  sliced  and  pickled  in  salt 
vinegar  were  sent  by  orders  of  physicians  to  supple- 
ment the  soldier's  diet  of  white  flour,  fat  meat, 
beef,  and  beans.  The  same  conditions  were  noted 
in  the  early  Klondike  days.  Potatoes  were  re- 
garded as  necessities  and  were  used  regardless  of 
their  excessively  high  cost. 

"The  early  Spanish  explorers  found  the  Peru- 
vian natives  stocking  their  boats  for  long  voyages 
with  a  plentiful  supply  of  this  wholesome  tuber. 

"Potatoes  are  easy  to  cook,  not  requiring  the 
expensive  process  in  labor  and  fuel  that  bread 
making  does.  They  may  be  prepared  in  such  a 
variety  of  ways  that  they  make  many  agreeable 
changes  in  the  food  supply  during  the  winter 
months.    They  are  easily'  grown,  yield  abundantly, 


THE  POTATO  265 

and  supply  a  starchy  food  at  a  price  within  the 
reach  of  all.  They  are  especially  rich  in  starch 
or  energy  supplying  food,  are  preeminently  the 
food  of  those  who  work  at  physical  labor,  and  it  is 
said  that  those  who  work  never  tire  of  potatoes. 
When  we  consider  all  these  advantages,  it  is  sur- 
prising that  more  potatoes  are  not  used  in  the 
United  States. 

NOTES  ON  COOKING  POTATOES 

"The  potato  is  in  such  universal  use,  and  is  so 
highly  nutritious,  that  above  all  other  vegetables 
it  would  seem  that  it  should  be  cooked  in  perfec- 
tion. However,  it  may  be  in  reality  that  no  other 
vegetable  is  so  carelessly  cooked.  The  proper 
cooking  of  the  potato  has  much  to  do  with  its 
nutritive  value.  It  is  a  starchy  food;  the  mi- 
croscopic starch  grains  are  intermingled  with  the 
waterj'  juice,  which  contains  the  albumen,  gelatine, 
minerals,  sugar,  and  acids.  All  of  these  elements 
are  highly  valuable  as  food  or  stimulants,  but  by 
careless  and  unscientific  methods  in  preparing 
and  cooking  they  may  be  partially  lost  and  wasted. 
How  often  do  we  hear  epicures  criticising  our  best 
hotel  cooking,  remarking  the  impossibility  of  being 
served  with  mashed  potatoes  of  a  good  quality.'^ 
Where  food  must  be  prepared  in  such  large  quan- 
tities the  potatoes  are  pared  and  soaked  in  water 
for  from  twelve  to  eighteen  hours  before  being 
boiled,  thus  losing  a  high  percentage  of  the  agree- 
able flavors,  the  nutritious  starch  and  albumen 
and  valuable  mineral  matter. 

"In  preparing  potatoes  for  cooking,  by  clumsy, 
awkward  paring  large  quantities  of  the  edible  i)or- 
tion  are  wasted,  one   fifth  on  the  average  and  as 


t>QQ  THE  POTATO 

high  as  one  fourth,  when  by  careful  measure- 
ment the  crude  fibre  or  true  skm  off  the  potato  is 
less  than  one  half  of  1  per  cent,  of  the  whole. 
When  potatoes  are  pared  and  soaked  in  water  and 
then  boiled  the  loss  has  been  found  to  be  as  high  as 
7  per  cent,  of  the  food  value,  the  albumen  and 
mineral  matter  being  the  elements  most  largely  lost. 
"The  different  methods  of  cooking  potatoes  are 
baking,  boiling,  steaming,  and  frying.  Each  of 
these  methods  may  be  so  conducted  as  to  retain 
practically  all  of  the  food  material.  When  po- 
tatoes are  cooked  in  the  skins  they  lose  nothing  of 
the  food  value,  but  a  slight  loss  of  water  is  noted. 
When  fried  there  is  no  loss  of  nutrients  and  the 
toasted  or  browned  starch  flavor  is  relished  by 
many.  Baked  potatoes  have  been  found  by 
scientific  experiment  to  be  more  quickly  digested 
than  those  cooked  in  other  ways,  but  it  seems  that 
in  healthy  individuals  the  time  of  digestion  of  food 
is  not  material  so  it  is  normally  digested.  A 
potato  cooked  in  the  skin,  either  baked,  boiled  or 
steamed,  then  peeled  and  mashed  and  seasoned  with 
plain  milk,  has  a  richness  of  flavor,  from  the  con- 
serving of  the  elements  of  flavor,  that  no  amount 
of  high-priced  artificial  seasoning  such  as  butter 
and  cream  can  give.  This  does  not  argue  against 
the  use  of  cream  and  butter,  but  only  calls  at- 
tention to  the  fine,  smooth  consistency  and  good 
flavor  that  can  be  secured  by  conserving  the  cor- 
tical layer  instead  of  panng  it  away.  Chemical 
analysis  has  shown  that  as  much  albumen,  the 
flesh-forming  food,  is  thrown  away  or  needlessly 
wasted  in  paring  fifty  pounds  of  potatoes  as  is  con- 
tained in  a  pound  of  sirloin  steak;  besides  this  loss 
of  nitrogenous  food,  that  of  the  carbohydrates  or 
starch  is  still  more. 


THE  POTATO  267 

"It  is  evident  from  all  tests  that  if  it  is  desired 
to  cook  potatoes  with  as  little  loss  of  flavor  and 
food  material  as  possible,  they  must  be  cooked 
with  the  skins  on." 

The  following  formulas  for  cooking  potatoes  are 
given  as  cwamples  of  met  hods  by  which  all  of  the 
nutrients  are  conserved: 

Boiled  Potatoes 

Place  in  deep  kettle  with  perforated  pan  in  bottom  of 
kettle,  and  cover  with  sufficient  water  to  cook  them,  but 
not  to  immerse  the  potatoes  in  the  boihng  water,  as  the  skins 
are  Hable  to  burst,  and  thus  the  food  be  wasted  in  the  boil- 
ing water.  Cover  very  closely.  When  very  well  done 
take  in  towel  and  squeeze  each  one  lightly  and  break  the 
skin;  this  allows  some  of  the  moisture  to  escape  and  leaves 
the  flesh  in  a  light,  fine,  mealy  condition.  If  the  potatoes 
are  not  in  this  condition  it  is  because  of  immaturity  or 
watery  ciuality  which  is  characteristic  of  tubers  grown  in 
soils  and  climate  not  well  adapted  to  potato  culture. 

Baked  Potatoes 

Place  in  moderate  oven  for  thirty  minutes  or  more,  then 
increase  to  quick  heat  to  finish.  When  done  take  in  a  towel 
and  stjueeze  lightly,  enough  to  crack  the  skin,  which  should 
not  l)e  baked  until  a  thick  crust  is  formed,  as  by  so  doing 
the  cortical  layer,  which  adds  so  much  to  flavor  and  nutri- 
tion, is  lost.  Potatoes  thus  treated  may  be  served  imme- 
diately or  will  keep  well  for  a  short  time  if  placed  in  a  warm- 
ing oven. 

Mashed  Potatoes 

Boil  or  steam  potatoes  in  their  skins  until  very  thor- 
oughly done.  Peel  and  mash  in  a  hot  kettle,  seasoning 
with  hot  milk,  adding  butter  and  cream  according  to  taste. 
Many  like  the  added  flavor  of  a  little  grated  onion  or  finely 
minced  chives. 

The  secret  of  having  these  in  perfection  is  in  mashing  and 
beating  thoroughly  with  a  wire  beater  until  they  are  light 
and  creamy. 


268  THE  POTATO 

Special  Baked  Potatoes 

Bake  as  for  ordinary  baked  potatoes.  When  cooled 
sufficiently  to  be  handled  without  burning  the  hands,  cut 
skin  from  one  side,  scoop  out  contents  into  a  hot  kettle, 
mash  and  beat  very  thoroughly,  seasoning  carefully  as  for 
mashed  potatoes.  Fill  shells,  place  a  small  piece  of  butter 
in  top  of  each,  and  brown  in  quick  oven.  Grated  cheese 
over  the  tops  while  baking  is  a  welcome  addition  for  many 

tastes. 

Harvest  Home  Potatoes 

Take  smooth  medium-sized  potatoes,  cut  a  thin  slice 
from  one  side,  scoop  out  contents.  Mince  finely,  seasoning 
with  salt  and  pepper  and  minced  parsley.  Place  in  shells 
and  cover  with  very  thin  slices  of  bacon  so  arranged  that,  in 
cooking,  the  fat  from  the  bacon  may  run  down  into  the 
minced  filHng.  Finely  chopped  celery  may  be  added  to  the 
mixture. 

Buttered  bread  crumbs  may  garnish  the  tops,  if  liked, 
instead  of  bacon. 

Cracker  crumbs  and  milk  may  be  added  to  the  filling.  In 
fact  ahnost  any  number  of  variations  may  be  invented. 

Place  in  hot  oven  and  bake  until  thoroughly  done.  Set 
in  warm  oven  for  fifteen  minutes  or  more  before  serving; 
this  gelatinizes  the  filling,  giving  it  a  rich,  creamy  texture. 

Potato  Soup 

Boil,  steam,  or  bake  potatoes  until  thoroughly  done, 
then  peel  and  mash  very  finely,  adding  while  mashing  a 
spoonful  of  flour  for  each  good-sized  potato. 

Season  with  salt,  pepper,  minced  celery,  chives  or  grated 
onion  as  liked.     Add  milk  to  make  desired  consistency. 

This  is  one  of  the  most  highly  nutritious  soups. 

COOKING    RECIPES    BY   A    FAMOUS    CHEF 

The  following  recipes  were  compiled  for  this 
book  by  Emil  Tenthorey,  chef  at  Hotel  Colorado, 
Glenwood  Springs,  Col.  In  polite  society  potatoes 
are  only  admitted  "en  robe  de  chambre,"  —  that 
is  to  say,  in  their  jackets  —  to  the  midday  meal  and 


THE  POTATO  2G9 

then  not  on  formal  occasions.     At  such  times  the 
following  are  used: 

Potato  Georgette 

Special  recipe  of  M.  Josopli,  chef  of  the  Cafe  Paillard: 
Take  a  potato  and  hollow  it  out,  filling  the  hollow  with  a 
salpicon  of  shrimp  tails  drenched  in  a  bisque  sauce  made 
from  the  heads  and  pounded  bodies  of  the  shrimps.  Cover 
the  potato  with  some  of  the  mashed  insides  and  bake  very 
well  done  and  serve  hot. 

Pommes  de  Terre  aux  oeufs 

From  the  recipe  of  a  famous  French  chef:  Put  a  good 
sized  lump  of  butter  into  the  pan,  as  soon  as  it  is  hot,  and 
brown  some  onions  in  it.  Cut  some  cold  potatoes,  which 
have  been  boiled  in  their  skins  and  afterward  peeled,  into 
slices.  Throw  these  into  the  pan,  spread  over  them  the 
well-whipped  yellow  of  two  eggs.  Salt,  pepper  and  serve 
when  the  potatoes  have  taken  a  nice  brown  color  on  each 
side. 

Potatoes  Hangraise 

Slices  of  cold  boiled  potatoes  and  onions  fried  together, 
then  baked  in  the  oven  with  a  little  grated  cheese  thrown  over 
it  and  garnished  with  finely  chopped  parsley. 

Potatoes  a  la  Maires 

Potatoes  cut  in  rounds,  boiled  until  barely  done  in  salted 
water,  drained  and  put  in  cream  which  has  been  reduced 
to  a  state  of  condensed  richness  by  evaporation  in  a  steam 
vessel.  The  reduction  of  the  cream  to  one  half  its  volume 
is  the  special  and  essential  feature  of  this  recipe. 

Potatoes  Hashed  in  Cream 

Cut  three  warm  boiled  potatoes  into  small  even  pieces, 
add  them  to  half  a  pint  of  boiled  cream  and  a  salt  spoonful 
of  salt. 

Potatoes  Anna 

Specialty  of  Delmonico's,  New  York:  Cut  very  thin 
slices  from  across  the  largest  potatoes,  lay  the  slices  in  flat 
layers  on  a  small  plate;  spread  fresh  butter  freely  over  the 
potatoes,  then  add  another  layer,  and  so  on  until  the  po- 


270  THE  POTATO 

tatoes  are  about  four  inches  higli.     Bake  unlil  the  potatoes 
are  tender  (about  one  half  hour)  in  a  quick  oven. 

Potatoes  a  la  Bonne  Bouche 

Shce  some  boiled  potatoes,  chop  a  blade  of  shallot,  also  a 
little  parsley  very  fine.  Place  in  a  stewpan  with  a  small 
piece  of  butter  and  a  pinch  of  mixed  sweet  herbs.  Let 
simmer  slowly  for  five  minutes,  then  put  in  the  potatoes, 
sprinkle  some  seasoning  over  them  and  let  simmer  slowly 
for  ten  minutes,  occasionally  stirring  to  prevent  burning. 
Just  before  serving  squeeze  the  juice,  of  a  lemon  over  the 
potatoes. 

Potato  Croquettes 

Dry  boiled  or  steamed  potatoes  with  butter,  salt  and 
egg  yolks,  all  mashed  together,  rolled  into  cone  shape, 
breaded,  or  rolled  in  cracker  dust,  and  fry  in  hot  lard. 

Potatoes  Duchesse 

Large  slices  of  raw  potatoes  cut  in  fancy  shapes,  sprinkled 
with  salt,  dipped  in  eggs  and  baked. 

Potatoes  Victoria 

Same  as  croquettes,  dipped  in  egg  and  baked  to  a  light 
brown  color. 

Potatoes  Gastronome 

Potatoes  raw,  cut  in  shape  of  bottle  corks  with  tube 
cutter,  boiled  barely  done  in  salt  water,  drained,  and  finished 
in  hot  lard,  dust  with  salt  and  chopped  parsley. 

Potatoes  Monico 

Raw  potatoes  cut  size  and  shape  of  a  lialf  dollar,  cooked 
barely  done  in  salt  water,  drained  and  finished  in  hot  lard. 
Dust  with  chopped  parsley  and  paprika. 

Potatoes  Julienne  (Shoestring  Potatoes) 

Cut  raw  into  very  fine  shreds  like  straws,  cook  quickly 
in  hot  lard,  dust  with  fine  salt. 

Between  the  Acts  Potatoes 
Same  as  Juliemie,  only  cut  about  twice  as  large. 


THE' POTATO  271 

Potatoes  a  VAnglatse 

Boiled  potatoes  in  skins,  peeled,  cut  in  quarters,  shaken 
up  with  soft  butter,  salt  and  chopped  parsley. 

Potatoes  au  Graiin 

Boiled  potatoes  sliced  in  cream  sauce  with  Parmesan 
cheese  and  cracker  dust  on  top.  Bake  to  a  golden  brown 
in  oven. 

Potatoes  au  Lard 

Stewed  potatoes  with  finely  minced  bacon  in  the  sauce. 

Potatoes  SautS 

Boiled  potatoes  cut  in  slices,  fried  in  pan  in  hot  lard  or 
butter. 

Poinmes  Nouvelles  a  la  C rente 

New  potatoes  peeled  and  stewed  in  cream. 

Potato  Queuelles 

Potatoes  boiled  or  steamed,  then  mashed  with  salt,  butter 
and  egg  yolk,  rolled  in  balls,  well  breaded  and  fried  in  very 
l-.ot  lard. 

Potato  en  Surprise 

Bake  large  potatoes  in  the  skins  until  three  quarters  done. 
Make  a  tubular  opening  in  the  end  and  hollow  out  the  end. 
Tightly  roll  a  thin  strip  of  bacon,  insert  in  the  opening,  close 
the  end  and  bake  until  done. 

Potatoes  Bretonne 

Cold  boiled  potatoes  cut  in  cubes.  Fry  with  onions  and 
brown  sauce. 

Potato  Colbut 

Same  as  Bretonne.     Add  chopped  parsley. 

Potatoes  Naiarroise 

Potatoes  cut  in  cubes,  parboiled  and  fried  to  a  light  color 
in  oil. 

Potatoes  Regente 

Same  as  potato  croquettes — hollow  out  and  fill  with 
pattie  mixture  of  lobster.     Replace  end  and  stand  upright. 


272  THEr  POTATO 

Saratoga  Potatoes 

Cut  into  very  thin  slices,  wash  and  steep  in  water  for  the 
starch  to  settle.  Fry  in  hot  lard.  Dust  with  salt  and 
pepper. 

HOTEL    POTATOES 

The  following  list  is  from  the  breakfast  bill  of 
the  Brown  Palace  Hotel,  Denver,  Col. : 

Potatoes,  French  Fried. ...  15  Potatoes,  Baked 15 

Potatoes,  Saratoga  Chips. .  20  Potatoes,  Julienne 25 

Potatoes,  O'Brien 30  Potatoes,  Saute 15 

Potatoes,  Hashed  Brown .  .  20  Potatoes,  Parisienne 25 

Potatoes,  Sweet 25  Potatoes,  Lyonnaise 20 

Potatoes  au  Gratin 25  Potatoes  Stewed  in  Cream.  25 

Potatoes,  German  Fried. .  .  20 

BATTLE    CREEK    RECIPES 

The  following  recipes,  which  are  in  daily  use 
at  the  Battle  Creek  Sanitarium,  have  been  fur- 
nished by  Miss  Lenna  F.  Cooper,  director  of  the 
Battle  Creek  Sanitarium  School  of  Health  and 
Household  Economics: 

Peanut  Potato  Soup 

11  cups  potatoes 

1  cup  cream 

1  pint  milk 

Cook  two  medium  sized  potatoes  and  put  through  a 
colander.  Add  water,  if  necessary,  to  make  1^  cups;  heat 
and  add  hot  milk  and  cream;  salt  and  serve.  Thi;i  makes 
one  quart. 

Potato  Chowder 

1  cup  milk 

1  cup  cream 

^  small  sliced  onion 

f  pint  sliced  potatoes 

1  pint  boiling  water 

I  teaspoonful  salt 


THE  POTATO  273 

Put  two  thirds  of  the  potatoes  to  cook  in  the  boiling  water; 
when  tender,  put  Lheni  through  a  cohindcr  and  add  the  re- 
maining sliced  potatoes,  the  onion  and  salt.  Cook  till  all 
are  tender;  heat  the  milk  and  cream  in  a  double  boiler  and 
add  to  the  cooked  potatoes.     Add  water  to  make  one  quart. 

Potato  Soup 

1  cup  raw  sliced  potatoes 

1^  teaspoonfuls  butter 

1  teaspoonful  celery  salt 

2  cups  water 

Steam  the  potatoes  and  put  through  a  colander.  Add 
water  to  make  two  cups;  season  and  serve. 

Potato  Cakes 

2  cups  hot  riced  potatoes 
2  tablespoonfuls  butter 
2  teaspoonful  salt 
§  teaspoonful  celery  salt 
5  teaspoonful  onion  juice 
Yolk  of  1  egg 
Mix  the  ingredients,  shape  and  bake  m  cakes;  when  almost 
done,  brush  the  cakes  with  cream  to  glaze  them. 

Neiv  Potatoes  in  Cream 

1  pint  cooked  potatoes 
^  cup  cream  sauce 

J  cup  cream 

Lentil  and  Potato  Loaf 

1^  cups  lentil  puree 

2  tablespoonfuls  butter 
J  cup  cream 

1  teasj)oonful  salt 
^  teaspoonful  sage 

2  cups  riced  potatoes 
J  cup  cream 

^  teaspoonful  butter 
I  teaspoonful  butter  for  brushing 
Mix  the  first  five  iugredionls  and  place  in  the  bottom  of 
an  oiled  baking  dish.     Whip  together  the  hot  potatoes  and 


274  THE  POTATO 

the    remaining    ingredients.      Place  this   mixture  on  top; 
bake  in  a  quick  oven;  serve  with  tomato  sauce. 

Creamed  Baked  Potatoes 

12  medium -sized  potatoes 
I  cup  cream 
1  cup  milk 
f  teaspoonful  salt 
Fare  the  potatoes  and  place  in  the  bottom  of  a  pan?  cover 
with  the  milk  and  cream;  add  the  salt;  cover  tlie  pan  and 
place  in  the  oven;  keep  covered  until  the  potatoes  are  almost 
done;  then  remove  the  cover  and  allow  the  milk  and  cream 
to  cook  down  until  they  are  somewhat  thick. 


Creamed  Potatoes  and  Peas 

3  pints  steamed  or  boiled  potatoes 
1     can  peas 
1     cup  cream 

1  cup  milk 

2  tablespoonfuls  flour 
1   tablespoonful  butter 

Thicken  the  milk  and  cream  with  flour,  braided  vnih  a 
little  milk  saved  out  for  the  purpose;  add  the  butter;  cook 
fifteen  minutes;  put  the  peas  in  and  pour  over  the  steamed 
potatoes. 

Potato  and  Onion  Hash 

1  cup  boiled  onion  chopped 

2  cups  cold  boiled  or  steamed  potatoes 
2  tablespoonfuls  butter 

1  teaspoonful  salt 
Chop  Ihe  potatoes  and  onions  together;  add  salt  and  butter, 
and  heat  in  the  oven. 

Potato  Loaf 

1  pint  freshly  mashed  potatoes 
^  cup  cream 
1  egg 

1  teaspoonful  salt 
Mix,  and  place  in  oiled  baking  dish ;  brown  in  the  oven. 


THE  POTATO  275 

Savory  Potato  Meal  Gruel 

1  cup  water,  in  which  is  steeped  two  stalks  of  cel- 
ery 
^  cup  water 
§  cup  strained  tomato 
2|  tablespoonfuls  baked  potato  meal 
J  cup  cream 
f  tcaspoonful  salt 
Mix  ingredients  and  heat. 

Baked  Potato  Cream  Gruel 

1  baked  potato 
5  cup  cream 
^  cup  water 
\  teaspoonful  salt 
Mash  the  potato  and  add  the  other  ingredients,  and  reheat. 

Baked  Potato  Gruel 

1  small  baked  potato 
\  teaspoonful  butter 
1  cup  water 
\  teaspoonful  salt 
Mash  the  potato,  add  the  butter,  salt  and  water;  heat  to 
boiling. 

Potato  Meal  Gruel 

\\  quarts  water 
1     cup  potato  meal 
Mix,  heat  and  serve. 

Lyonnaise  Potatoes 

3  quarts  diced  steamed  potatoes 
1  medium-sized  raw  onion  cliopped 
\  cup  chopped  parsley 
f  cup  butter 
Mix  and  heat  in  a  double  boiler. 

Mashed  Potatoes 

1  quart  mashed  potatoes 
I  cup  cream  or  milk 
\  tablespoonful  butter 


276  THE  POTATO 


Minced  Potatoes 


1  qwart  minced  potatoes 
^  cup  cream  or  milk 
f  teaspoonful  salt 
Heat  in  oven. 

Parisian  Potatoes 

1  quart  steamed  potatoes 
1  pint  brown  sauce 
Place  potatoes  in  a  pan,  cover  with,  brown  sauce,  and 
bake  fifteen  to  twenty  minutes. 

Brown  Sauce 


J  cup  flour 
I  cup  butter 
1|  cups  water 
^  cup  cereal  coflPee  (liquid)  broth 
^  cup  strained  tomato 
1  teaspoonful  salt 

Stvjfed  Potato 

1  medium-sized  baked  potato 

1  teaspoonful  cream 

1  teaspoonful  butter 
Remove  the  inside  of  the  potato  with  a  spoon,  mash  and 
mix  with  the  cream  and  butter.     Fill  the  potato  shell  with 
the  mixture  and  put  in  the  oven  for  a  few  minutes. 

Potato  Salad 

1  quart  diced  potatoes 

2  hard  cooked  egg  yolks 
Grated  onion  or  celery 

Salt  for  seasoning  two  cups  of  mayonnaise  dressing;  dice 
cold  boiled  potatoes;  cut  yolks  in  small  pieces,  season,  mix 
with  mayonnaise  and  let  stand  one  hour  before  serving. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

MANUFACTURES 

THE   potato  consists  largely  of  starch  and 
water.      Its    use  in   manufacturing    comes 
from    the    high    content   of   the   carbohy- 
drate   starch. 

In  the  manufacturing  world  the  potato  is  made 
use  of  for  starch,  potato  flour,  glucose,  alcohol, 
and  desiccated  potatoes. 

STARCH 

The  starch  content  in  potatoes  in  Wisconsin  is 
discussed  in  "Farmers'  Bulletin  05"  of  the  United 
States  Department  of  Agriculture: 

*'The  value  of  a  potato  crop  to  the  grower  de- 
pends mainly  upon  the  yield  and  the  size,  form,  and 
healthy  condition  of  the  tubers.  Perfect  tubers 
find  ready  sale  at  the  best  prices,  while  the  yield 
in  itself  has  no  effect  on  the  transaction,  and  the 
chemical  composition  of  the  potatoes  is,  as  a  rule, 
disregarded  by  the  buyer,  unless  they  are  to  be 
used  in  starch  making.  In  every  100  pounds  of 
average  potatoes  there  is  seventy-five  pounds  of 
water.  Of  the  remaining  twenty-five  pounds 
about  twenty  pounds  is  carbohydrates  (starch  and 
sugar,  etc.)  and  two  pounds  protein.  The  chief 
value  of  the  potato  for  food  as  well  as  for  starch 
making  lies  in  the  stiirch  which  the  tubers  contain. 

277 


278  THE  POTATO 

The  protein  content  is  low  and  tiie  carbohydrates 
high,  and,  therefore,  potatoes  are  especially  valu- 
able for  use  in  connection  with  foods  rich  in  pro- 
tein, such  as  lean  meat,  eggs,  etc.,  to  furnish  a 
well-balanced  diet.  The  subject  of  the  starch 
content  of  potatoes  is  thus  seen  to  be  one  of  great 
importance,  and  during  recent  years  it  has  at- 
tracted increased  attention  from  American  and 
European  investigators. 

"An  interesting  study  of  the  conditions  affect- 
ing the  starch  content  of  potatoes,  begun  in  1889, 
is  reported  in  the  Annual  Report  of  the  Wisconsin 
Experiment  Station  for  1895.  In  these  investi- 
gations the  starch  content  was  approximately 
determined  by  means  of  the  specific  gravity  of  the 
tubers.  Since  by  far  the  greater  part  of  the  po- 
tato tuber  is  starch  and  water,  and  since  starch  is 
heavier  than  water,  it  is  evident  that  the  variation 
in  starch  content  will  affect  the  specific  gravity 
of  the  tuber. 

"Among  the  forty-six  varieties  of  the  crop  of 
1889  the  variety  Zenith  showed  the  highest  starch 
content,  22.9  per  cent.,  and  Rural  Blush  the  least, 
13.1,  the  average  for  all  varieties  being  16.2  per 
cent.  In  1890  thirty-one  varieties,  mostly  dif- 
ferent from  those  tested  the  year  previous,  had  an 
average  starch  content  of  14.3  per  cent.,  Burbank 
showing  the  highest,  17.7,  and  the  Kidney,  a  po- 
tato from  Germany,  the  least,  11.4  per  cent.  All 
these  varieties  of  potatoes  were  grown  on  the 
same  kind  of  soil  and  under  practically  the  same 
cultural  conditions.  Still,  the  variation  in  starch 
content  was  as  much  as  9.8  per  cent. 

"The  starch  content  was  found  to  vary  with 
the  season  with  different  tubers  of  the  same  va- 
riety.   Pronged  and  regular  tubers  of  four  varieties 


THE  POTATO  279 

were  tested  separately,  and  in  each  case  it  was 
found  that  the  percentage  of  starch  in  the  pronged 
tubers  was  smaller  than  in  the  regular  tubers. 
This  seems  to  be  one  of  the  causes  of  the  variation 
in  the  starch  content  above  referred  to 

*'A  test  of  different-sized  tubers  of  the  same 
variety  proved  that  there  was  practically  no  differ- 
ence in  the  starch  content  of  large  and  small  tubers. 

*'In  studying  the  influence  of  the  depth  at 
which  tubers  grow  in  the  soil  upon  the  starch  con- 
tent, it  was  found  the  first  year  that  in  every  case 
the  percentage  of  starch  was  largest  in  the  deeper- 
growing  tubers  and  smallest  in  those  growing 
nearest  the  surface.  When  we  consider  the  slight 
variation  in  depth  at  which  the  tubers  grow  in  the 
soil  these  facts  are  significant.  The  next  year  the 
experiment  was  repeated  with  a  trial  of  level  and 
hill  culture.  The  level  culture  gave  higher  starch 
content  than  hill  culture,  and  the  variations  with 
the  depth  were  greater  in  the  hill  culture  than  in 
the  level  culture.  These  facts  suggest  a  possible 
explanation  of  the  depth  influence  —  viz.,  that  it 
acts  through  the  temperature  of  the  soil.  The 
deeper  tubers  are  in  a  cooler  medium  than  the 
shallow  ones,  and  soil  that  is  hilled  is  warmer  in 
w^arm,  dry  weather  than  that  which  is  not  hilled. 
The  variation  of  temperature  in  the  deeper  and 
shallower  layers  would  naturally  be  greater  in  the 
hilled  soil. 

"In  experiments  in  planting  at  different  dis- 
tances the  starch  content  increased  as  the  distance 
between  the  plants  decreased.  This  seems  to  ac- 
cord with  the  results  of  the  tests  of  depth  of  plant- 
ing, since  close  planting  promotes  shading  of  the 
ground  and  thus  tends  to  reduce  the  soil  tempera- 
ture. 


280  THE  POTATO 

"A  test  of  scabby  and  healthy  tubers  of  the 
Delaware  variety  showed  a  higher  starch  content 
in  the  scabby  tubers  than  in  the  healthy  ones,  thus 
showing  that  scabby  potatoes  are  not  necessarily 
poorer  in  starch  than  those  free  from  scab." 

The  manufacture  of  starch  from  sweet  potatoes 
is  discussed  in  "Farmers'  Bulletin  334"  of  the 
United  States  Department  of  Agriculture  as  fol- 
lows: 

"With  a  view  to  the  more  complete  and  profit- 
able utilization  of  the  sweet-potato  crop  the 
South  Carolina  station  several  years  ago  began 
investigations  to  determine  the  starch  content  of 
different  varieties  of  sweet  potatoes  and  those 
most  promising  for  starch  making,  how  much 
starch  can  be  recovered  commerically  from  the 
potatoes,  and  the  quality  of  the  starch  for  com- 
mercial purposes. 

"As  it  is  usually  managed  at  the  present  time, 
only  a  fraction  of  the  crop  is  disposed  of,  all  un- 
marketable potatoes  being  usually  a  dead  loss,  and 
frequently,  through  inability  to  market  the  crop 
promptly,  great  loss  is  suffered  through  damage 
by  rotting,  etc.  Where  the  crop  could  be  dis- 
posed of  to  starch  factories  the  grower  would  have 
the  following  advantages:  (1)  All  potatoes 
could  be  sold,  regardless  of  their  size.  (2)  No 
barrels  or  containers  would  be  required  in  market- 
ing the  crop.  They  could  be  loaded  into  a  wagon 
in  the  field  and  hauled  directly  to  the  factory,  or 
to  the  nearest  railroad  and  loaded  into  cars  for 
shipment.  (3)  Grown  on  such  a  large  scale, 
modern  machinery  could  be  employed  in  plant- 
ing,  cultivating,   and  harvesting  the  crop,   thus 


THE  POTATO  281 

reducing  the  cost  of  growing.  (4)  Heavier  yield- 
ing varieties  could  be  grown,  which  are  the  ones 
most  valuable  for  starch  production. 

*'Up  to  the  time  when  the  study  of  the  question 
of  producing  starch  from  sweet  potatoes  was  be- 
gun at  this  station,  it  was  a  subject  that  had  re- 
ceived practically  no  attention  in  this  country. 
It  is  true,  starch  was  made  from  this  plant  on  a 
small  scale  in  the  Southern  States  during  the  war, 
but  the  starch  obtained  in  this  way  was  a  com- 
paratively impure  product  and  intended^  only 
for  home  consumption. 

"It  would  seem  that  the  sweet  potato  could  be 
profitably  used  for  this  purpose,  as  it  contains  a 
larger  percentage  of  starch  than  the  Irish  potato, 
yields  a  heavier  crop,  and  can  be  grown  more 
cheaply.  Another  advantage  it  has  over  the  Irish 
potato  is  the  fact  that  the  vines  of  the  former 
make  a  good  food  for  stock  —  some  varieties  being 
very  palatable,  making  good  hay  and  excellent 
silage.  In  composition  they  compare  favorably 
with  other  forage  crops. 

"The  development  of  cotton  manufacturing  in 
the  South  has  created  a  demand,  which  is  con- 
tinually increasing,  for  starch  used  in  'sizing'  yarn 
and  'filling'  cloth.  At  present  every  pound  of  this 
starch  is  brought  from  other  states,  principally 
from  the  cornstarch  factories  of  New  York  and 
Illinois.  The  experiments  which  we  have  had 
carried  out  show  that  for  use  on  cotton  goods  the 
starch  produced  from  sweet  potatoes  is  better  than 
cornstarch,  and  fully  equal  to  the  best  grades  of 
Irish  potato  starch.  The  annual  })roduction  of 
sweet  potatoes  in  the  South  Atlantic  and  Gulf 
States  is  about  60,000,000  bushels,  but  this  might 
be    easily    increased    tenfold.       The    theoretical 


282  THE  POTATO 

amount  of  starch  produced  per  acre  from  a  good 
crop  of  sweet  potatoes  is  from  one  and  one  half 
to  four  times  as  much  as  from  corn,  wheat,  or  Irish 
potatoes  per  acre. 

"The  variety  most  in  demand  for  a  table  po- 
tato is  not  necessarily  the  one  best  suited  for  the 
manufacture  of  starch.  In  fact,  we  can  say  al- 
most conclusively  that  it  is  not,  as  the  variety  con- 
taining the  largest  percentage  of  starch  is  apt  to  be 
dry  and  insipid.  Then,  too,  for  starch  production 
we  want  a  prolific  potato,  and  as  a  rule  the  heaviest 
vields  are  not  of  the  best  qualitv  for  the  table. 
These  are  the  most  essential  requirements:  (1) 
High  starch  content;  (2)  prolificness;  (3)  fiesh 
light,  or  white  in  color.  The  following  come  nearer 
possessing  these  requirements  than  any  ve  have 
thus  far  examined:  Providence,  Southern  Queen, 
and  Triumph.  Further  work  may  show  that 
there  are  other  varieties  better  suited  for  this 
work  than  anj^  of  those  mentioned. 

"The  machinery  used  in  the  station  experiments 
was  similar  to  that  used  in  making  starch  from 
Irish  potatoes. 

"Four  varieties  of  potatoes  were  used  — 
Southern  Queen,  Providence,  Triumph,  and  Red 
Nansemond.  The  first  three  were  chosen  for  their 
high  starch  content  and  light  color,  and  one  test 
was  made  of  Red  Nansemond  to  see  if  the  color 
would  interfere  with  successful  starch  making. 

"The  results  of  experiments  carried  out  for 
two  years  in  succession  show  the  entire  practi- 
cability of  the  manufacture  of  starch  from  sweet 
potatoes,  but  'the  data  accumulated  is  yet  insuf- 
ficient to  make  any  positive  statement  as  to 
whether  engaging  in  this  enterprise  will  prove  a 
paying  investment.' 


THE  POTATO  283 

"At  the  price  at  which  sweet  potatoes  are  sold 
at  the  present  time  their  nianufaclure  into  stiircli 
alone  would  not  be  profitable.  It  must  be  re- 
membered, however,  that,  grown  on  the  scale 
which  would  be  necessary  to  run  one  or  more  starch 
factories,  there  are  a  number  of  expenses  which 
could  be  eliminated. 

"In  the  conducting  of  a  factory  the  following 
plan  suggests  itself  as  a  feasible  one :  The  factory 
to  take  over  all  potatoes  from  the  farmer,  select 
the  best  and  even-size  ones  to  be  shipjjed  to  market 
for  table  use,  and  make  starch  from  the  small, 
over-size,  and  ill-shaped  ones.  All  operations 
being  controlled  in  this  way  by  the  factory  on  a 
large  scale,  the  product  could  be  utilized  and  mar- 
keted to  the  best  advantage.  In  case  of  dull 
market  conditions,  instead  of  shipping  the  potatoes 
they  could  be  canned,  for  which  there  is  a  great 
and  increasing  demand  at  the  present  time. 

"A  successful  method  has  also  been  devised 
for  evaporating  sweet  potatoes.  In  this  con- 
dition they  will  keep  indefinitely,  and,  owing  to 
their  concentrated  form,  can  be  shipped  long  dis- 
tances at  comparatively  small  cost.  They  would, 
no  doubt,  be  quite  popular  if  better  known. 

"As  is  the  case  in  all  paying  enterprises,  it 
would  be  necessary  to  watch  carefully  the  by- 
products and  utilize  them  to  the  best  advantage. 
A  method  could  undoubtedlv  be  devised  for  col- 
lecting  the  water  with  which  the  potatoes  are 
treated  in  the  grinding  operation.  This  would 
contain  the  greater  portion  of  the  sugars  and 
could  be  added  to  the  pulp  —  from  which  starch 
has  been  extracted  —  and  all  sugars,  starch,  and 
fermentable  matter  remaining  could  be  converted 
into  alcohol.     It  has  been  sliown  that,  theoreti- 


284  THE  POTATO 

cally,  fifty  gallons  of  95  per  cent,  alcohol  could  be 
produced  from  the  residues  from  100  bushels  of 
potatoes. 

"It  is  practically  settled  that  the  starch  pro- 
duced from  sweet  potatoes  is  of  a  high  grade  and 
suitable  for  use  in  many  operations  where  a  high 
grade  starch  is  required.  In  all  of  the  tests  we 
have  had  made  not  a  single  adverse  report  has 
been  received. 

"In  practical  tests  for  laundry  purposes,  for 
sizing  yarn,  filling  cloth,  thickening  colors,  etc., 
the  starch  gave  highly  satisfactory  results." 

AI.COHOL 

The  potato  is  one  source  of  industrial  alcohol. 
In  "Farmers'  Bulletin  2G9"  of  the  United  States 
Department  of  Agriculture  H.  W.  Wiley  says: 

"The  most  important  of  the  uses  of  industrial 
alcohol  as  far  as  the  farmer  is  directly  concerned 
are  those  included  in  heating  and  illumination. 

"It  is  quite  certain  that  the  use  of  alcohol 
motors  on  the  farm  will  become  quite  common  as 
soon  as  the  technique  of  construction  is  practically 
complete  and  the  price  of  alcohol  is  sufficiently 
low.  Alcohol  can  be  used  for  all  purposes  for 
which  gasoline  is  employed — namely,  the  driving 
of  wagons,  carriages,  stationary  motors,  water 
pumps,  mowing  machines,  plows,  etc.  Very  little 
change  need  be  made  in  the  engine  of  a  motor  car 
designed  to  use  gasoline  to  fit  it  for  the  use  of 
alcohol. 

"Alcohol  is  used  very  extensively  in  the  manu- 
facture of  dj^es  and  other  by-products  from  coal 
tar.     The  manufacture  of  smokeless  powder  is  one 


THE  POTATO  285 

of  the  industries  in  which  tax-free  alcohol  is  of  the 
highest  importance. 

"One  of  the  most  important  technical  uses  of 
alcohol  is  in  the  manufacture  of  varnishes  and  lac- 
quers, where  the  gums  which  are  employed  are 
necessarily  dissolved  in  alcohol.  The  use  of  alco- 
hoi  is  extremely  important  and  affects  a  great  many 
industries. 

"The  ether  of  commerce,  sometimes  called  sul- 
phuric ether,  is  manufactured  exclusively  from  al- 
cohol by  the  action  of  sulphuric  acid  and  heat. 

"Alcohol  is  used  very  extensively  in  the  prepa- 
ration of  medicines.  That  great  body  of  reme- 
dies known  as  tinctures  is  made  by  using  alcohol 
as  a  solvent  for  the  active  principle  of  the  herbs 
and  plants  from  which  the  tinctures  are  made. 
The  law,  however,  docs  not  permit  the  use  of  de- 
natured alcohol  for  *  liquid  medicinal  purposes.' 

"The  substance  which  is  known  as  imitation  silk 
is  really  a  production  from  cotton  or  other  cel- 
lulose material  which,  in  its  finished  state,  re- 
sembles silk  somewhat  in  lustre.  It  is  not  silk 
and  hence  not  even  artificial  silk.  It  is  a  textile 
product  which  has  the  promise  of  a  successful 
future  and  is  therefore  of  interest  not  only  to  the 
manufacturer  and  the  consumer  but  to  the  farmer 
who  produces  the  cellulose.  Imitation  silk  is  in 
a  measure  the  same  substance  as  smokeless  powder, 
except  that  after  it  is  made  the  nitrogenous  con- 
stituents are  removed,  so  as  to  restore  the  finished 
product  again  to  the  condition  of  ordinary  cotton, 
devoid  of  explosive  proj)erties.  In  the  making  of 
imitation  silk  a  partial  nitrification  of  the  cotton  is 
accomplished  in  much  the  same  manner  as  in  mak- 
ing smokeless  powder.  The  partially  nitrated 
cotton  is  then  reduced  to  a  paste  by  solution  in 


286  THE  POTATO 

alcohol,  ether,  or  other  solvent,  and  in  this  con- 
dition is  forced  through  small  orifices,  producing 
fine  fibres  of  a  silky  lustre. 

"Dilute  alcohol,  commonly  known  as  low  wines, 
can  be  utilized  for  the  manufacture  of  vinegar. 
For  this  purpose  the  dilute  alcohol  is  made  to  pass 
over  the  fresh  shavings  of  beech  wood. 

"The  flavoring  extracts  of  commerce  are  made 
largely  with  alcohol  as  a  solvent." 

In  "Farmers'  Bulletin  268"  is  the  following  by 
the  same  author: 

"The  term ' industrial  alcohol'  is  used  for  brevitA% 
and  also  because  it  differentiates  sharply  between 
alcohol  used  for  beverages  or  for  medicine  and 
alcohol  used  for  technical  purposes  in  the  arts. 

"The  process  of  rendering  alcohol  unsuitable 
for  drinking  is  called  'denaturing,'  and  consists, 
essentially,  in  adding  to  the  alcohol  a  substance 
soluble  therein  of  a  bad  taste  or  odor,  or  both,  of 
an  intensity  which  would  render  it  impossible  or 
impracticable  to  use  the  mixture  as  a  drink. 

"The  substance  should  also  be  of  such  a  char- 
acter that  it  is  difficult  to  remove  it  entirely  from 
the  alcohol  by  any  usual  process  of  distillation. 

"Industrial  alcohol,  therefore,  is  a  product 
which  is  the  joint  work  of  the  farmer  and  the 
manufacturer.  The  function  of  the  farmer  con- 
sists in  the  production  of  the  raw  materials  from 
which  the  alcohol  is  to  be  made.  The  manufac- 
turer takes  these  raw  materials  and  converts  them 
into  alcohol.  This  is  done  under  the  supervision 
and  control  of  the  Bureau  of  Internal  Revenue  of 
the  Treasury  Department. 

"The  number  of  substances  which  have  been 


THE  POTATO  287 

mixed  with  alcohol  to  dcnaiiirc  it  is  extremely 
large,  and  that  particular  denaturing  agent  should 
be  selected  which  is  best  adapted  to  the  special 
use  to  which  the  denatured  alcohol  is  to  be  put. 
Among  the  substances  which  have  been  proposed 
are  the  following: 

"Gum  shellac  (with  or  without  the  addition  of 
camphor,  turpentine,  wood  spirit,  etc.),  colophon- 
ium,  copal  resin,  Manila  gum,  camphor,  turpen- 
tine, acetic  acid,  acetic  ether,  ethylic  ether,  methyl 
alcohol  (wood  alcohol),  pyridin,  acetone,  methyl 
acetate,  methyl  violet,  methylene  blue,  anihn  blue, 
eosin,  fluorescein,  naphthalene,  castor  oil,  benzin, 
carbolic  acid,  caustic  soda,  musk,  animal  oils,  etc. 

"The  materials  and  the  quantities  which  are 
employed  depend  upon  the  purposes  for  which 
the  denatured  alcohol  is  to  be  used.  There  are 
many  technical  uses  of  alcohol,  however,  in  which 
the  pure  alcohol  only  can  be  employed,  and  it  is 
a  question  to  be  decided  by  the  Bureau  of  Inter- 
nal Revenue  whether  such  use  of  pure  alcohol  can 
be  permitted  under  the  existing  law. 

*'The  raw  materials  from  wdiich  alcohol  is  made 
consist  of  those  crops  grown  upon  the  farm  which 
contain  sugar,  starch,  gum,  and  cellulose  (w^oody 
fibre)  capable  of  being  easily  converted  mto  a 
fermentable  sugar.  Alcohol  as  such  is  not  used 
as  a  beverage.  The  alcohol  occurring  in  distilled 
beverages  is  principally  derived  from  Indian  corn, 
rye,  barley,  and  molasses.  Alcohol  is  also  produced 
for  drinking  purposes  from  fermented  fruit  juices, 
such  as  the  juice  of  grapes,  apples,  peaches,  etc. 

"The  term  '  alcohol '  as  used  herein  and  as  gener- 
ally used  means  that  particidar  product  which  is 
obtained  by  the  fermentation  of  a  sugar,  or  a 
starch  converted  into  sugar,  and  which,  from  a 


288  THE  POTATO 

chemical  point  of  view,  is  a  compound  of  the  hy- 
pothetical substance  ethyl  with  water,  or  with  that 
part  of  water  remaining  after  the  separation  of  one 
of  the  atoms  of  hydrogen.  This  is  a  rather  tech- 
nical expression,  but  it  is  very  difficult,  without 
using  technical  language,  to  give  a  definition  of 
alcohol  from  the  chemical  point  of  view.  There 
are  three  elementary  substances  represented  in 
alcohol:  Carbon,  the  chemical  symbol  of  which  is 
C;  hydrogen,  symbol  H;  and  oxygen,  symbol  O. 
These  atoms  are  put  together  to  form  common 
alcohol,  or,  as  it  is  called,  ethyl  alcohol,  in  which 
preparation  two  atoms  of  carbon  and  five  atoms  of 
hydrogen  form  the  hypothetical  substance  ethyl 
and  one  atom  of  oxygen  and  one  atom  of  hj^drogen 
form  the  hydroxl  derived  from  water.  The  chemical 
symbol  of  alcohol  therefore  is  C^  H5  OH.  Ab- 
solutely pure  ethyl  alcohol  is  made  only  with 
great  difficulty,  and  the  purest  commercial  forms 
still  have  associated  with  them  traces  of  other 
volatile  products  formed  at  the  time  of  the  dis- 
tillation, chief  among  which  is  that  group  of  al- 
cohols to  which  the  name  fusel  oil  is  applied. 

"Starch  is  a  compound  which,  from  the  chemical 
point  of  view,  belongs  to  the  class  known  as  car- 
bohydrates— that  is,  compounds  in  which  the  ele- 
ment carbon  is  associated  by  a  chemical  union 
with  water.  Starch  is  therefore  a  compound  made 
of  carbon,  hydrogen,  and  oxygen,  existing  in  the 
proportion  of  two  atoms  of  hydrogen  to  one  atom 
of  oxygen.  Each  molecule  of  starch  contains  at 
least  six  atoms  of  carbon,  ten  atoms  of  hydrogen, 
and  five  atoms  of  oxygen.  The  simplest  expres- 
sion for  starch  is  therefore  Ce  H5  O5. 

''The  principal  starch  producing  plants  are  the 
cereals,  the  potato,  and  cassava.     With  the  po- 


THE  POTATO  289 

tato  may  be  classed,  though  not  botanlcally  re- 
lated thereto,  the  sweet  potato  and  the  yam. 
Among  cereals  rice  has  the  largest  percentage  of 
starch  and  oats  the  smallest.  The  potato,  as 
grown  for  the  table,  has  an  average  content  of 
about  15  per  cent,  of  sUirch.  When  a  potato  is 
grown  specifically  for  the  production  of  alcohol  it 
contains  a  larger  quantity,  or  nearly  20  per  cent. 
Cassava  contains  a  larger  percentage  of  starch 
than  the  potato,  varying  from  20  to  30  per  cent. 

*' Under  the  microscope  the  granules  of  potato 
starch  have  a  distinctive  appearance.  They  ap- 
pear as  egg-shaped  bodies  on  which,  especially  the 
larger  ones,  various  ring-like  lines  are  seen.  With 
a  modified  light  under  certain  conditions  of  ob- 
servation a  black  cross  is  developed  upon  the  gran- 
ule. It  is  not  difficult  for  an  expert  microscopist 
to  distinguish  potato  from  other  forms  of  starch 
by  this  appearance. 

"The  mineral  matters  which  the  potato  ex- 
tracts from  the  soil  or  from  the  fertilizers  which 
are  added  thereto  consist  chiefly  of  phosphate  and 
potash.  The  mean  average  composition  of  the 
ash  of  the  potato  is  shown  in  the  following  table : 

Potash  (K,0)        ....            60.3 

Soda  (XaO)          2.62 

Lime  (CaO) 2.57 

Magnesia  (MfiO) 4.69 

Iron  oxid.     (Fe.O,) 1.18 

Pho-sphoric  acid  (P.O5) 17 .  33 

Sulphuric  acid  (S63) 6.49 

Chlorin 3.11 

SiHcic  acid  (SiO,) 2.13 

"This  analysis  was  made  upon  the  so-called 
pure  ash,  deprived  of  its  unburned  carbon,  and 
freed  of  sand  and  carbon  dioxid. 


290  THE  POTATO 

*'0f  all  the  common  root  crops,  the  potatoes, 
including  the  yam  and  the  sweet  potato,  are  the 
most  valuable  for  the  production  of  alcohol,  mean- 
ing by  this  term  that  they  contain  more  ferment- 
able matter  for  100  pounds  than  other  root  crops. 
This  is  shown  by  the  following  comparative 
statement: 

White  turnips    .      .      ...      .      .  6  to  8  per  cent. 

Rutabagas '    .  8  "  13 

Mangel-WTirzels ".  8  "  15 

Carrots 8  "  16 

Parsnips 8  "  17 

Sugar-beets 10  "  22 

Potatoes,  sweet  potatoes  and  yams     .  14  "  26 

"Under  the  most  favorable  circumstances  and 
with  potatoes  which  have  been  bred  especially  for 
the  purpose  an  average  content  of  fermentable 
matter  of  about  20  per  cent,  may  be  reasonably 
expected.  It  is  thus  seen  that  approximately 
ten  pounds  of  industrial  alcohol  can  be  made 
from  one  hundred  pounds  of  potatoes.  If  sixty 
pounds  be  taken  as  the  average  weight  of  a  bushel 
of  potatoes,  there  are  found  therein  twelve  pounds 
of  fermentable  matter,  from  which  six  pounds  of 
industrial  alcohol  can  be  produced,  or  six  sevenths 
of  a  gallon.  It  has  also  been  shown  that  at  the 
prices  quoted  in  1905  the  amount  of  Indian  com 
necessary  for  the  production  of  a  gallon  of  indus- 
trial alcohol  costs  not  less  than  15  cents.  From 
this  it  is  evident  that  the  potatoes  for  alcohol  mak- 
ing will  have  to  be  produced  at  a  cost  not  to  exceed 
15  cents  per  bushel  before  they  can  compete  with 
Indian  corn  for  the  manufacture  of  industrial 
alcohol. 

"The  three  principal  steps  in  the  manufacture  of 


THE  POTATO  291 

alcohol  are  (1)  the  preparation  of  the  mash  or  wort, 
(2)  the  fermentation  of  the  mash  or  wort  drawn  off 
from  the  mash  tun,  and  (3)  the  distillation  of  the 
dilute  alcohol  formed  in  the  beer  or  wash  from  the 
fermentation  tanks.  The  preparation  of  mash  in- 
cludes (1)  the  treatment  of  the  material  used  with 
hot  water  to  form  a  paste  of  the  starch  or  the  sugar, 
and  (2)  the  action  of  the  malt  or  ferment  on  the 
paste  to  convert  the  starch  into  fermentable  sugar. 

*'The  object  of  the  mash  tun  is  to  reduce  the 
starch  in  the  ground  grain  to  a  pasty,  gummy  mass, 
in  order  that  the  ferment  of  the  malt  may  act  upon 
it  vigorously  and  convert  it  into  sugar.  If  the 
mashing  be  done  before  the  addition  of  the  malt 
the  temperature  may  be  raised  to  that  of  boiling 
water.  If,  however,  the  malt  be  added  before 
the  mashing  begins,  the  temperature  should  not 
rise  much,  if  any,  above  140  degrees  F.,  since  the 
fermenting  power  is  retarded  and  disturbed  at 
higher  temperature.  The  mashing  is  simply  a 
mechanical  process  by  means  of  which  the  starch 
is  reduced  to  a  form  of  paste  and  the  temperature 
maintained  at  that  point  which  is  best  suited  to 
the  conversion  of  starch  into  sugar. 

"The  mash,  after  the  starch  has  all  been  con- 
verted into  sugar,  goes  into  fermenting  tanks, 
which  in  Scotland  are  called  *  wash  backs'  when  the 
yeast  is  added.  They  often  have  a  stirring  ap- 
paratus whereby  the  contents  can  be  thoroughly 
mixed  with  the  yeast  and  kept  in  motion.  This 
is  not  necessary  after  the  fermentation  is  once 
well  established,  but  it  is  advisable,  especially  in 
the  early  stages,  to  keep  the  yeast  well  distributed 
throughout  the  mass.  In  these  tanks  the  fer- 
mentations are  conducted,  the  temperature  being 
varied  according  to  the  nature  of  the  product  to 


292  THE  POTATO 

be  made.  For  industrial  alcohol  the  sole  purpose 
should  be  to  secure  the  largest  possible  percentage 
of  alcohol  without  reference  to  its  palatable  prop- 
erties." 

Consul  John  H.  Grout,  Odessa,  Russia,  says: 

"In  the  alcohol-distilling  industry  of  Russia 
potatoes  are  annually  increasing  in  importance, 
the  alcohol  produced  therefrom  exceeding  that  pro- 
duced from  all  other  sources. 

"Aside  from  the  large  quantities  of  potatoes 
purchased  every  year  by  the  factories  from  peas- 
ant producers  and  estate  owners  whenever  these 
may  have  a  surplus  which  they  cannot  more  prof- 
itably dispose  of,  there  are  large  plantations 
devoted  solely  to  the  production  of  potatoes  for 
distilling  purposes,  there  being  also  a  tendency 
to  increase  these  plantations. 

"The  potato  crop  of  1910  for  European  Russia 
was  greatly  in  excess  of  that  of  the  previous  year, 
which  was  also  a  good  one,  and  the  quality  of  the 
tubers  was  in  most  districts  better  than  in  1909. 
It  is  generally  supposed  that  the  climate  of  Russia 
is  favorable  for  the  production  of  potatoes  in  vast 
quantities,  and  that,  with  the  aid  of  fertilizers, 
their  production  can  be  increased  to  meet  all 
demands  of  distillation,  the  production  of  dena- 
turized  sprits  for  industrial  and  illuminating 
purposes  now  being  only  in  its  infancy." 

DRIED    OR    DESICCATED    POTATOES 

It  is  the  opinion  of  Secretary  of  Agriculture 
James  Wilson  and  other  close  students  of  the  food 
supply  of  the  world  that  there  should  be  some  way 


THE  POTATO  293 

of  preparing  and  preserving  potatoes  that  stocks 
may  be  carried  over  from  tlic  "fat"  (large  jm'o- 
ducing)  to  the  "lean"  (small  producing)  years. 
This  would  balance  or  equalize  supplies  to  guard 
against  possibility  of  famine  or  an  approach  to  it 
because  of  crop  shortage  in  densely  populated 
countries. 

In  the  Daily  Consular  and  Trade  Reports  of  the 
Bureau  of  Manufactures  of  the  Department  of 
Commerce  and  Labor,  February  19,  1910,  Consul 
Thomas  H,  Norton,  of  Chemnitz,  describes  a  proc- 
ess recently  introduced  by  a  Prussian  firm  by 
which  potatoes  may  be  converted  into  a  dry  con- 
centrated meal.     He  writes  as  follows: 

"The  potato  occupies  a  relatively  more  impor- 
tant position  in  Germany  than  in  other  European 
countries.  It  is  not  only  employed  largely  for 
food  for  both  man  and  beast,  but  also  for  conver- 
sion into  starch  and  alcohol.  The  1908  crop  was 
estimated  at  40,500,000  metric  tons  (51,i25G,950 
short  tons),  13,000,000  tons  being  used  for  hiunan 
food  and  19,000,000  tons  for  feeding  domestic 
animals.  Starch  factories  utilized  1,500,000  tons, 
distilleries  2,500,000  tons,  while  5,500,000  tons 
were  required  for  seed.  There  remained  5,000,000 
tons,  lost  by  decay,  freezing,  etc.  German  econo- 
mists have  recognized  the  extent  of  this  national 
loss,  of  about  $28,500,000  in  value,  especially  be- 
cause the  empire  now  imports  annuallv  about 
$72,000,000  worth  of  cattle  fodder.  Nearly  40 
per  cent,  of  this  sum,  paid  to  foreign  agriculture, 
could  be  saved  if  the  loss  by  subseciuent  decay  in 
the  harvest  potato  crop  could  be  prevented. 

"Numerous  processes  have  been  sul)mitted  in 
response   to   an   offering   of  prizes   amounting  to 


294  THE  POTATO 

$6,000.  These  are  based  upon  two  distinct 
methods  of  treatment.  In  the  first,  sUced  po- 
tatoes are  exposed  to  the  current  of  hot  gases  from 
a  furnace;  in  the  second,  the  flake  process,  potatoes 
are  more  finely  divided,  and  dried  at  a  lower  tem- 
perature with  the  aid  of  steam  coils.  This  last 
method  is  costly.  The  product  of  the  first  method, 
while  available  for  industrial  purposes,  is  not  fully 
satisfactory  for  use  as  a  fodder. 

"A  process  recently  patented  and  introduced 
by  a  Prussian  firm  seems  to  have  successfully  over- 
come the  disadvantages  of  the  earlier  systems. 
The  essential  features  consist  in  the  use  of  pressure 
combined  w  ith  a  vacuum  for  withdrawing  the  bulk 
of  the  water  in  potatoes,  the  further  drying  of  the 
residue  by  artificial  heat,  and  the  isolation  of 
albumen  found  in  the  press  liquor.  This  process 
has  been  tried  with  excellent  results  on  an  indus- 
trial scale. 

"The  plant  employed  is  comparatively  simple. 
The  potatoes  are  first  thoroughly  washed  in  a  large 
vat  provided  with  a  stirring  apparatus.  Thence 
they  pass  into  a  mashing  machine,  and  the  pulpy 
mass  is  pumped  into  a  reservoir,  and  from  this  is 
fed  through  a  large  funnel  into  the  suction  machine. 
The  latter  is  the  central  feature  of  the  plant  and 
presents  a  somewhat  novel  form  of  utilizing  the 
vacuum  principle.  It  consists  of  two  hollow  cyl- 
inders, one  immediately  above  the  other.  The 
exterior  is  made  of  perforated  plate  similar  to  that 
employed  in  centrifugal  machines  and  filter  pumps, 
and  is  covered  with  linen  filtering  cloth.  A  pipe 
connects  the  interior  of  each  cylinder  with  an  air 
exhaust.  The  interior  spaces  are,  however, 
divided  into  segments,  and  the  construction  is 
such  that  the  lessened  pressure  in  each  segment  is 


THE  POTATO  295 

felt  when  it  is  in  immediate  contact  with  the  com- 
panion cyHnder.  As  the  potato  pulp  passes  be- 
tween the  two  cylinders,  not  only  their  pressure, 
but  also  atmospheric  pressure,  removes  nearly  all 
liquid.  The  residual  mass  falls  into  a  trough  and 
is  conducted  by  a  helical  conveyor  to  small  cars. 
These  pass  into  a  hydraulic  press,  where  the  mass 
is  finally  deprived  of  all  water  capable  of  removal 
by  pressure. 

"From  the  press  the  potato  mass  is  transferred 
to  the  drier.  This  consists  of  a  cylindrical  cham- 
ber, within  which  there  is  a  revolving  drum, 
divided  horizontally  into  ten  sections.  The  upper 
seven  sections  are  heated  by  connection  with  a 
series  of  steam  pipes;  the  lower  three  are  cooled  by 
means  of  a  similar  series,  through  which  water 
circulates.  The  pressed  potato  cake  is  continu- 
ously fed  into  the  top  section.  From  this  it  grad- 
ually descends  through  openings  into  the  lower 
sections,  one  after  another,  until  it  finally  issues 
from  the  bottom  compartment  and  is  conveyed  to 
storage  rooms.  The  construction  of  this  revolv- 
ing drum  is  such  that  prongs  attached  to  its  axis 
continually  stir  up  and  crumble  the  nearly  dried 
potato  cake,  so  that  it  is  in  coarse  grains  when  it 
leaves  the  apparatus.  At  the  same  time,  by  means 
of  properly  directed  air  currents  and  the  aid  of 
the  elevated  temperature  in  the  upper  seven  sec- 
tions, nearly  all  moisture  remaining  after  the  treat- 
ment in  the  press  is  effectively  removed. 

"The  resultant  coarse  potato  meal  has  one 
quarter  of  the  original  weight  of  the  tubers  em- 
ployed, and  occupies  one  eighth  of  the  space.  It 
has  an  odor  and  taste  similar  to  that  of  freshly 
made  bread.  It  may  be  used  or  kept  in  this  con- 
dition, or  can  be  pressed  into  compact  cakes  for 


296  THE  POTATO 

convenience  in  transportation.  The  chemical  analy- 
sis of  potato  meal,  dried  as  above  described,  gives 
the  following  percentages:  Water,  11.50;  fat,  0.31; 
protein,  3.73;  ash,  2.06;  fibre,  1.71;  carbohydrates, 
80.69. 

"Pressed  potato  cake  is  easily  broken  up  by 
hand,  and  can  be  fed  to  animals,  alone  or  mixed 
with  other  forms  of  fodder,  preferably  after  mois- 
tening with  a  little  water,  when  it  is  at  once 
softened. 

*'By  the  combined  processes  of  pressure  and 
suction  nearly  three  quarters  of  the  weight  of  raw 
potatoes  are  removed  in  the  form  of  a  cloudy 
liquor.  This  portion  is  allowed  to  stand  in  res- 
ervoirs until  all  traces  of  starch  have  settled  to 
the  bottom.  The  clear  liquor  is  then  boiled  and 
filtered  with  the  aid  of  a  vacuum  apparatus. 
A  precipitate  is  obtained  of  crude  protein 
amounting  to  about  2  per  cent,  of  the  original 
weight  of  the  tubers.  By  proper  treatment  this 
yields  about  80  per  cent,  of  technically  pure 
albumen,  which  is  constantly  in  demand  in  Ger- 
man markets. 

"The  residual  liquors  from  the  protein  precipi- 
tate contain  small  amounts  of  sugar,  salts,  and 
nitrogenous  matter.  They  can  be  advantage- 
ously used  for  irrigation  purposes  on  agricultural 
lands. 

"The  plant  requisite  for  the  treatment  of 
10,000  tons  of  potatoes  during  a  season  of  about 
eight  months  costs  $18,000  to  $19,000.  The 
machinery  alone,  without  a  press  for  transforming 
the  meal  into  cakes,  costs  $12,000.  For  a  building, 
$3,000  suffices,  and  the  remainder  is  needed  for 
pumps,  motive  power,  washing  vats,  etc. 

"The  force  needed  to  operate   the  plant   con- 


THE  POTATO  297 

sists  of  seven  men,  and  includes  one  engineer,  a 
stoker,  one  helper,  one  workman  in  the  potato 
cellar,  two  to  attend  to  the  machines,  and  one  to 
handle  the  residual  liquors.  If  the  fintd  product 
is  to  be  pressed  into  cakes,  the  additional  cost  of 
the  plant  is  about  $4,000,  and  two  more  operatives 
are  required.  Such  an  installation  can  naturally 
be  operated  with  great  economy  in  connection 
with  a  distillery  or  starch  factory. 

"In  practice  it  is  found  that  the  total  cost  of 
preparing  unpressed  potato  meal  by  the  above 
method  (including  interest,  depreciation,  etc.)  is 
$0.56  per  long  ton  of  tubers.  The  additional  cost 
for  pressing  into  cakes  is  $0.12  per  ton  of  potatoes. 
In  estimating  the  cost  of  the  fodder  thus  produced 
it  is,  of  course,  necessary  to  deduct  a  certain  sum 
for  the  albumen  extracted  from  the  residual  liquor, 
as  mentioned  above.  AVhen  potatoes  are  to  be 
raised  for  supplying  regions  more  or  less  remote 
with  cattle  fodder  the  advantage  of  having  the 
nutritive  constituents  of  the  tuber  in  a  concen- 
trated form  is  obvious.  Thus,  in  practice,  3.8 
tons  of  raw  potatoes  yield  one  ton  of  the  (l(\sic- 
cated  product.  The  freight  charges  in  Germany 
for  transporting  (in  carloads)  the  3.8  tons  a  dis- 
tance of  100  kilometers  (62  miles)  are  $3.07.  The 
freight  charge,  under  similar  conditions,  for  the 
one  ton  of  meal  would  be  $0.81.  Addhig  to  this 
the  cost,  50  cents  per  ton,  of  treating  the  3.8  tons 
of  raw  potatoes,  or  $2.13,  the  total  expense  of 
delivering  the  fodder  would  be  $2.94.  At  the 
comparatively  short  distance  of  twenty-six  miles 
there  is  then  a  distinct  economy  in  shij)ping  the 
meal  instead  of  tubers.  With  every  increase  in 
distance  there  would  be  a  proportionate  increase 
in  the  saving. 


298  THE  POTATO 

"In  these  days  of  rising  values  for  all  meat  prod- 
ucts there  is  a  prospect  that  the  newly  introduced 
process  will  aid  materially  in  decreasing  the  cost 
of  cattle  raising  in  various  sections  of  the  empire, 
where  stock  raisers  are  largely  dependent  upon 
fodder  transported  from  a  distance.'* 

The  manufacture  of  desiccated  potatoes  has 
been  started  in  the  United  States. 

C.  F.  Langworthy,  in  "Farmers'  Bulletin  295," 
says: 

"Potatoes  are  so  valuable  in  the  diet  that 
many  attempts  have  been  made  to  put  them  into 
a  compact  form  in  which  they  can  be  kept  for  a 
long  time.  This  is  usually  accomphshed  by  drying 
them,  which  both  preserves  them  from  decay  and 
reduces  their  bulk.  One  of  the  oldest  of  such  prep- 
arations is  one  long  used  in  Peru  and  known  as 
chunno.  To  make  it,  part  of  the  juice  is  pressed 
out  of  the  potatoes,  w^hich  are  then  dried  in  the  air 
imtil  they  are  reduced  to  about  one  fourth  of  their 
original  weight.  There  is  a  variety  of  similar  prep- 
arations in  American  and  European  markets,  and 
although  the  mode  of  procedure  differs  consider- 
ably in  the  various  brands  the  main  principle  is 
the  same  —  namely,  to  check  bacterial  action.  The 
changes  which  w^e  call  decay  are  caused  mainly  by 
the  development  of  bacteria.  These  can  repro- 
duce only  where  there  is  moisture  and  warmth 
present.  Therefore,  if  the  moisture  is  removed, 
their  growth  is  retarded.  The  fact  that  the  bulk 
of  the  potatoes  is  reduced  at  the  same  time  is 
especially  advantageous  because  such  dried  prep- 
arations are  used  mainly  for  camping  expeditions, 
long  sea  voyages,  and  under  other  conditions  where 


THE  POTATO  299 

storage  space  is  at  a  premium.  The  composi- 
tion of  such  desiccated  or  evaporated  potatoes  is 
practically  that  of  the  original  tubers  minus  more 
or  less  of  the  water.  Of  course,  if  extreme  heat 
is  used  in  the  preparation,  part  of  the  starch  may 
be  changed  to  dextrin  and  there  may  be  other 
minor  changes  in  the  chemical  composition. 
There  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  these  decrease 
the  nutritive  value.  Various  kinds  of  desiccated 
potatoes  have  been  studied  at  the  California 
Agricultural  Experiment  Station.  Their  water 
content  ranged  from  4.8  to  7.9  per  cent,  and  their 
total  carbohydrates  from  77.9  to  80.6  per  cent. 
In  fact,  their  general  composition  was  not  unlike 
that  of  good  white  flour.  They  contained  slightly 
less  water,  protein  and  fat,  slightly  more  car- 
bohydrates, and  noticeably  more  mineral  matters. 
Of  course  desiccated  potatoes  are  supposed  to  be 
soaked  in  water  before  using  and  in  this  way  re- 
gain somewhat  their  original  characteristics. 
While  their  flavor  and  appearance  cannot  equal 
these  of  good  fresh  potatoes,  they  are  considered 
very  appetizing  and  acceptable  where  fresh  ones 
are  unobtainable. 

"Chemical  substances  are  sometimes  used  for 
improving  the  color  (i.  e.,  'bleaching')  of  desiccated 
potatoes.  While  a  small  quantity  of  these  may  be 
harmless,  their  continued  presence  in  the  diet 
might  be  very  dangerous,  and  their  use  is  not  to  be 
recommended. 

"Canned  potatoes  are  on  the  market  and  arc 
prepared  for  use  in  camps  or  wherever  it  is  not 
convenient  to  cook  food.  They  also  may  be  kept 
in  good  condition  for  a  long  time.  In  composi- 
tion such  goods  do  not  dift'er  from  similar  freshly 
cooked  potatoes." 


300  THE  POTATO 

MANUFACTURING    AT    KYRITZ,    GERMANY 

During  the  season  of  1910  the  senior  author 
made  a  study  of  manufacturing  potato  products 
in  Germany,  and  his  notes  follow: 

"The  manufacture  of  starch,  potato,  flour  and 
glucose  at  this  place  was  started  in  1872.  It  is 
now  one  of  the  largest  and  most  successful  manu- 
facturing centres.  The  factory  there  claims  to 
produce  the  best  product  in  Germany.  There 
are  from  twenty  to  thirty  factories  in  the  countiy. 

*'The  factory  is  an  immense  affair,  as  large  as 
a  million  dollar  beet-sugar  factory  in  the  United 
States  and  equipped  with  the  finest  macliineiy. 
Everything  in  the  factory  is  kept  pohshed  and 
clean.  Germans  are  noted  for  this  in  all  tlieir 
manufacturing  plants. 

"Potatoes  come  to  the  factoiy  in  cars  in  buBv. 
The  factory  starts  about  September  1st,  or  as  soon 
as  starch  is  developed  in  the  potatoes. 

"The  company  which  owns  and  operates  the 
factory  is  owned  jointly  by  the  growers  and  busi- 
ness men  of  Kyritz.  It  must  be  operated  at  a 
profit.  As  manager,  Mr.  Bergmann  wa^  anxious 
to  know  if  there  were  opportmiities  for  factories 
in  America. 

"In  the  factory  every  economy  that  German 
science  and  mechanics  can  invent  is  employed  for 
the  cheap  handling  of  the  product,  for  saving 
greatest  per  cent,  of  high-class  products  and  con- 
serving the  by-products. 

"One  of  the  most  interesting  features  was  a 
pipe  line  for  carrying  the  water  that  had  been 
used  in  extracting  the  starch  from  the  sliced  or 
pulped  potato  to  a  waste  piece  of  sand  land  grown 


THE  POTATO  301 

up  to  hcallier,  two  miles  distant.  This  was  re- 
claiming and  building  uj)  the  fertility  of  this  land. 
It  was  seeded  to  pasture  grasses  and  200  acres 
furnished  grazing  for  300  head  of  stock. 

"The  pulp  or  waste  is  used  for  stock  feeding,  the 
same  as  beet  pulp  from  sugar-beet  factories,  but 
the  Germans  prolong  its  use  more  than  we  do  by 
dr^^ing  it  so  that  it  retains  its  feeding  value  for  a 
year.     It  is  mostly  used  for  cow  and  pig  feed. 

"Farmers  who  live  long  distances  from  the 
factory  manufacture  coarse  or  crude  starch  on  their 
farms  and  ship  the  gross  product  to  the  factory  for 
refining  and  manufacturing,  saving  the  transpor- 
tation on  raw  potatoes  and  keeping  the  pulp  for 
their  stock. 

"Potato  flour  is  usuallj^  called  rough  starch. 
The  process  of  manufacturing  has  recently  been 
very  greatly  improved  and  still  greater  improve- 
ments are  now  contemplated. 

"The  price  of  starch  and  flour  is  the  same.  It 
is  ruled  by  the  price  of  wheat  and  sells  at  about 
the  same  price  per  hundred. 

"Rye  flour  is  improved  for  baking  by  its  ad- 
dition. Cake  makers  and  confectioners  use  it 
mixed  with  wheat  flour.  It  makes  dehcious  and 
nutritious  puddings  and  cakes.  The  usual  price 
is  $5  per  barrel  of  200  pounds. 

"When  the  manager  was  asked  wdiy  they  had 
so  many  casks  racked  up  at  a  starch  factory,  he 
replied; 'I  had  hoped  you  would  not  see  them  or 
ask  me  about  them.  They  are  casks  in  which  we 
ship  glucose  in  to  the  confectioners  of  London, 
Paris,  Berlin,  and  other  large  cities.' 

"This  glucose  is  one  of  the  by-])roducts  of  the 
factory.  It  is  of  the  highest  (jualiiy  and  brings 
more    money    than    glucose    manufactured    from 


302  THE  POTATO 

cereals.  It  sells  for  75  cents  more  per  200  pounds 
than  flour. 

*'This  factory  uses  250,000  tons  of  potatoes 
annually.  The  price  paid  for  potatoes  of  18  to 
24  per  cent,  starch  content  is  20  to  35  cents  per 
hundred,  or  12  to  21  cents  per  bushel.  One  of  the 
by-products  is  3,500  tons  of  glucose. 

"The  farmers  in  irrigated  districts  of  the  West 
can  make  splendid  incomes  for  growing  potatoes  for 
starch.  It  can  also  be  done  by  the  farmers  of 
the  potato-growing  states  of  the  East  when  they 
bring  their  lands  up  to  the  productiveness  they 
are  capable  of. 

"The  manufacturing  of  small  and  waste  and 
rough  potatoes  every  year,  feeding  the  pulp,  and 
making  desiccated  potatoes  in  seasons  of  over- 
production, will  make  the  potato  industry  more 
stable  and  make  the  prices  more  even. 

"With  our  cheap  electric  power  and  coal,  as 
compared  with  Germany,  this  manufacturing  of 
potatoes  should  be  more  profitable  here. 

"The  manufacture  of  alcohol  from  potatoes 
keeps  the  price  of  gasoline  comparatively  low  in 
Europe." 


CHAPTER  XXV 

POTATOES   AND    POTATO    PRODUCTS    AS    STOCK    FEED 

ON  A  basis  of  strict  economy  as  regards  the 
use  of  the  world's  supply  of  foodstuffs,  it 
would  probably  never  be  right  to  feed  po- 
tatoes fit  for  human  food  to  livestock. 

Granting  this,  the  potato  has  yet  a  place  of  some 
importance  as  a  stock  food.  There  are  thousands 
of  tons  of  small,  cut,  bruised  and  diseased  potatoes 
produced  annually  in  potato  districts  that  should 
be  converted  into  high-class  animal  products.  In 
addition  to  this,  there  are  the  by-products  of  the 
various  manufacturing  processes  in  which  the  po- 
tato is  used 

The  feeding  of  potatoes  and  potato  products  has 
been  practised  more  in  Europe  than  in  America, 
because  the  American  farmer  has  had,  since  the 
beginning  of  agriculture  in  this  country,  an  abund- 
ance of  cheap  grains  for  stock  feeding. 

We  have  undoubtedly  seen  the  last  of  ex- 
tremely low-priced  grains  —  so  that  the  heavy 
cropping,  succulent  potato,  should  have  a  place 
of  increasing  importance  as  one  part  of  stock  feed 
rations. 

In  "Farmers'  Bulletin  79  "  of  the  United  States 
Department  of  Agriculture  is  the  following  in- 
teresting information: 

"A  number  of  French  agriculturists  have  re- 
cently studied  the  desirability  of  ensiling  potatoes. 

303 


304  THE  POTATO 

A  considerable  amount  of  heat  is  generated  by  the 
fermentation  of  the  green  material  in  silos,  and  it 
was  thought  this  could  be  utilized  and  the  pota- 
toes could  be  cooked  as  well  as  preserved. 

"In  one  test  the  potatoes  were  buried  in  a  silo 
filled  with  crimson  clover.  They  acquired  the 
characteristic  color  of  the  plant  and  the  odor 
developed  in  fermentation.  The  tubers  were 
flattened  by  the  heavy  pressure  to  which  they  had 
been  subjected.  When  removed  from  the  silo 
they  were  comparatively  soft.  They  were  exam- 
ined microscopically  and  chemically,  and  it  was 
found  that  they  had  been  cooked  by  the  heat  of 
fermentation,  and  that  they  were  rendered  more 
digestible  by  the  process;  that  is,  the  percentage  of 
soluble  material  was  increased... 

"Another  silo  was  filled  by  siurrounding  about  a 
ton  of  potatoes  with  corn  (whole  plant).  Upon 
opening,  the  corn  and  potatoes  were  both  found  in 
good  condition.  The  tubers  were  found  somewhat 
flattened,  as  in  the  previous  experiment,  but  were 
more  cohesive.  The  potatoes  were  not  as  thor- 
oughly cooked,  since  the  temperature  and  pres- 
sure were  less  than  in  the  previous  case. 

"As  shown  by  analysis,  the  potatoes  ensiled 
with  crimson  clover  had  lost  less  water  than  those 
ensiled  with  corn.  The  most  striking  difference, 
however,  was  the  high  percentage  of  cooked  starch ; 
or  in  other  words  the  increased  assimilability  of 
the  potatoes  ensiled  with  clover.  The  crushed 
potatoes  when  removed  from  the  silo  lost  weight 
very  rapidly  on  exposure  to  the  air,  and  formed  a 
hard  mnss,  containing  only  15  to  20  per  cent,  of 
water.  In  this  condition  they  could  be  kept  for  a 
long  time.  When  required  for  feeding  purposes 
they  were  soaked  in   water,   which  they  readily 


THE  rOTATO  30.> 

cibsorbcd  and  llius  regained  their  softness  and  di- 
gestibility. 

"Another  investigator  ensiled  chopped  raw 
})otatoes  with  two  pounds  of  salt  per  1,000  pounds 
of  potatoes,  under  pressure  of  2,500  pounds  per 
square  yard.  The  total  cost  of  hashing,  chopping, 
putting  in  the  silo,  and  weighing  fifty  tons  of  pota- 
toes was  about  $15.  The  potatoes  were  put  in 
the  silo  in  the  latter  part  of  November.  When 
the  silo  was  filled  the  material  was  five  and  a  half 
feet  deep.  Sixty-two  days  later  the  silo  was 
opened,  and  the  mass  had  sunk  to  a  little  over 
three  feet.  The  temperature  of  the  silo  when 
filled  was  39  degrees  F.,  and  when  opened  it  was 
50  degrees.  The  ensiled  potato  pulp  was  white, 
but  became  blackened  on  exposure  to  the  air. 
Cattle  ate  this  pulp  greedily,  alone  or  mixed  with 
cottonseed  cake. 

"Experiments  made  at  the  Minnesota  station 
have  shown  that  while  the  digestibility  of  cooked 
and  raw  potatoes  by  pigs  was  about  the  same, 
pigs  could  be  induced  to  eat  larger  quantities  of 
cooked  potatoes.  It  was  calculated  that  a  ration 
of  fifteen  pounds  of  potatoes  and  four  pounds 
of  shorts  would  furnish  an  amount  of  protein 
sufficient  for  maintenance,  leaving  a  margin  for 
growth. 

"On  the  basis  of  cost,  comparisons  were 
made  of  the  value  of  potatoes  and  other  feeding 
stuffs.  In  the  investigator's  opinion,  with  foods 
at  the  present  prices,  it  is  doubtful  whether  it 
would  be  profitable  to  feed  large  amounts  of 
potatoes  to  dairy  stock,  because  cows  require 
more  protein  than  would  be  supplied  by  a  fatten- 
ing ration  similar  in  character  to  that  mentioned 
above. 


306  THE  POTATO 

*' Potatoes  cannot  be  fed  to  young  animals  as 
safely  as  to  more  mature  ones,  since  if  fed  in  too 
large  quantities  they  have  a  tendency  to  pre- 
maturely fatten  the  animal.  With  mature  animals 
when  the  object  is  principally  the  addition  of  fat 
to  the  body,  potatoes  may  be  fed  to  good  advan- 
tage. 

"When  the  crop  of  potatoes  is  large  and  prices 
low,  a  method  of  storing  and  feeding  potatoes  to 
advantage  is  desirable. 

"A  method  of  preserving  potatoes  which  at  the 
same  time  cooks  them  would  seem  worthy  of  trial, 
but  it  would  doubtless  be  wise  to  experiment  on 
a  small  scale  first." 

John  M.  Scott,  in  Florida  Agricultural  Experi- 
ment Station  *' Press  Bulletin  71,"  says: 

"In  all  feeding  experiments  it  has  been  found 
that  rations  containing  a  high  percentage  of  carbo- 
hydrates (fat  and  heat  producing  material)  do  not 
give  good  returns  in  producing  meat;  but  if  suf- 
ficient protein  (muscle  and  bone  producing  ma- 
terial) is  added,  so  as  to  give  the  animal  a  balanced 
ration  (or  one  nearly  balanced)  the  results  arc 
generally  satisfactory.  It  makes  little  difference 
in  what  feeds  the  carbohydrates  are  furnished  so 
long  as  the  material  is  digestible.  Since  sweet 
potatoes  are  a  crop  easily  grown,  give  good  yields, 
are  well  adapted  to  the  soils  and  climate  of  Florida, 
and  contain  a  large  percentage  of  carbohydrates, 
some  notice  should  be  taken  of  them,  and  they 
deserve  to  be  studied  in  order  to  find  out  their 
value  as  a  feed  for  pork  production. 

"It  has  been  pretty  clearly  demonstrated  that 
sweet  potatoes  when  fed  alone  are  a  poor  feed  for 


THE  POTATO  307 

pork  production.  This  is  due  to  the  fact  that 
sweet  potatoes  contain  such  a  hirgc  amount  of 
carbohydrates  and  such  a  small  percentage  of 
protein.  The  results  of  these  experiments  may  be 
summarized  as  follows: 

"In  a  feeding  test  lasting  forty -two  days,  four 
pigs  were  fed  on  sweet  potatoes  only,  during  which 
time  the  pigs  lost  in  weight  instead  of  making  a 
gain.  The  pigs  in  this  test  were  rather  small, 
averaging  only  twenty-two  pounds.  In  another 
experiment  with  older  pigs,  averaging  about  one 
hundred  pounds,  the  results  were  a  httle  more 
favorable;  yet  the  gains  in  w^eight  were  not  large 
enough  to  make  it  a  paying  investment  to  feed 
sweet  potatoes  alone.  When  some  other  feed  was 
used  in  combination  wath  sweet  potatoes,  the 
results  were  quite  different.  In  one  test  lasting 
for  a  period  of  twenty-eight  days  pigs  averaging 
150  pounds  were  fed  sweet  potatoes  and  shorts  in 
the  proportion  of  one  part  shorts  to  six  parts  sweet 
potatoes  by  w^eight.  The  pigs  made  good  daily 
gains,  giving  the  sweet  potatoes  a  value  of  about 
50  cents  per  hundred  (when  pork  was  worth  5  cents 
per  pound)  for  pork  production. 

"This  may  perhaps  seem  a  very  small  price  for 
the  farmer  to  receive  for  his  sweet  potatoes,  but 
it  certainly  gives  him  an  idea  as  to  the  feeding 
value  of  his  potato  crop.  If  the  market  price  of 
potatoes  should  fall  as  low  as  65  cents  or  70  cents 
per  hundred,  it  would  be  a  question  whether  or 
not  the  farmer  could  best  afford  to  put  his  crop  on 
the  market  or  feed  it  to  his  hogs." 

In  "Farmers'  Bulletin  410,"  the  analysis  of  pota- 
toes, potato  skins,  and  potato  slop  is  given  as 
follows : 


308 


THE  POTATO 


Material 

Ash 

Protein 

(Nx  6.25) 

Ether 

extract 

(fat) 

Sugar  as 
dextrose 

SUrch 

Crude 
fibre 

Nitro- 
gen free 
extract 

Per 

cent. 

Per 
cent. 

Per 
cent. 

Per 
cent. 

Per 
cent. 

Per 

cent. 

Per 

cent. 

Potato 
Potato 
skins 
Slop 

4.39 

6.51 
11.26 

10.06 

21.87 
30.00 

0.29 

2.55 
.69 

1.59 

1.44 
2.29 

70.35 

8.65 
2.98 

2.26 

20.69 
6.54 

10.55 

38.40 
46-24 

"This  table  shows  that  the  dry  substance  in  the 
slop  is  very  different  in  composition  from  the 
potato  itseK,  being  a  more  highly  nitrogenous  food. 
The  great  increase  in  the  amount  of  protein  as 
compared  with  the  total  dry  substance  in  the  slop 
is,  of  course,  due  to  the  fermentation  of  the  starch 
and  sugar,  resulting  in  a  concentration  of  the  nitrog- 
enous material. 

"Any  scheme  for  the  operation  of  agricultural 
distilleries,  whether  small  or  large,  should  provide 
for  the  utilization  of  the  by-product  knowTi  as 
'slop.'  This  is  the  residuum  remaining  after  the 
alcohol  and  a  small  amount  of  water  have  been 
boiled  off  from  the  fermented  distillery  mash;  and 
it  contauis,  dissolved  or  suspended  in  the  remaining 
liquid  of  the  mash,  all  of  the  constituents  of  the 
materials  employed  except  that  portion  of  the 
sugars  and  starch  which  was  converted  into  alcohol 
during  tlie  fermentation.  This  slop  has  been 
found,  both  in  this  country  and  abroad,  to  be  a 
feeding  stuff  of  high  value  and  should  be  fed  to  the 
stock  on  the  farm  that  furnishes  the  raw  materials 
used  in  the  distillery.  In  this  way  its  full  utiliza- 
tion can  be  secured.  First,  through  the  production 
of  flesh,  milk,  or  energy  in  the  stock  to  which  it  is 
fed;  and,  second,  by  returning  to  the  soil  in  the 


THE  POTATO  309 

form  of  manure  those  necessary  elements  of  plant 
food  which  were  abstracted  during  the  production 
of  the  potatoes  or  other  raw  materials. 

"The  large  proportion  of  water  contained  in  all 
slop  has  an  important  bearing  in  determining  the 
amount  of  slop  solids  which  can  be  fed  to  any 
animal  in  one  day.  It  has  been  customary  in  this 
country,  where  cattle  have  been  fed  with  slop  in 
sheds  on  the  grounds  of  large  whiskey  and  alcohol 
distilleries  and  not  on  the  farm,  to  allow  each  bul- 
lock dailj''  the  volume  of  slop  corresponding  to  a 
bushel  of  the  grain  mashed.  In  other  words,  a 
distillery  mashing  1,000  bushels  daily  will  diiitrib- 
ute  its  slop  among  1,000  head  of  cattle.  Reduced 
to  volume,  this  would  be  equivalent  to  about 
thirty  gallons  per  head  per  day.  This  amomit  is 
excessive,  even  when  fed  with  considerable  ciuan- 
tities  of  hay  and  other  roughage,  as  is  showTi  by 
the  flabbiness  of  the  stock  and  the  liquid  character 
of  their  manure.  The  injurious  effect  of  the  slop 
when  fed  excessively,  as  heretofore  in  tliis  countr3% 
is  liable  in  the  case  of  milch  cows  to  result  in 
dangerous  contamination  of  their  milk  through 
the  great  difficulty  of  keeping  their  hindquarters 
clean. 

"In  Germany,  where  slop  feeding  has  been 
practised  very  successfully  on  the  basis  of  care- 
ful investigations  at  the  agricultural  experiment 
stations,  it  is  customary  to  feed  much  smaller 
volumes.  According  to  Maercker,  it  is  allowable 
to  give  from  eighteen  to  twenty  gallons  per  head 
per  day  in  fattening  oxen  weighing  from  1,300  to 
1,400  pounds.  More  than  this  amount  has  been" 
found  injurious.  Milch  cows  should  not  receive 
more  than  sixteen  gallons  daily.  It  is  necessary 
to  feed  the  slop  as  hot  as  i)Ossible,  and  since  it  is 


310  THE  POTATO 

especially  susceptible  to  bacterial  decomposition  it 
should  also  be  fed  when  fresh. 

"Investigations  are  needed  in  this  country  to 
determine  the  composition  of  rations,  suited  to 
American  conditions,  in  which  potato  slop  takes 
its  proper  place." 


CHAPTER  XXVI 

POTATOES     FOR     EXHIBITION:     SCORE     CARDS     AND 

STANDARDS 

THE  interest  in  exhibits  of  agricultural  prod- 
ucts increases  yearly.  Never  before  in 
the  history  of  this  country  have  the  most 
representative  and  influential  people  so  keenly 
realized  the  importance  of  farming,  and  this  is 
manifested  in  the  apparent  demand  for  shows  at 
which  are  displayed  the  ])roducts  of  the  soil. 

To  see  the  results  of  the  most  advanced  work  in 
farming  helps  the  producer,  the  dealer,  and  the 
consumer.  The  producer  is  spurred  to  do  his  best, 
and  the  rivalry  between  growers  makes  the  product 
better  each  year;  the  dealer  is  educated  as  to  better 
sorts,  and  methods  of  marketing  are  improved,  and 
the  consumer  learns  to  know  and  appreciate  the 
best,  thereby  increasing  consumption. 

The  Old  World  is  far  in  advance  of  America  in 
some  features  of  agricultural  exliibitions.  There, 
shows  are  held  for  agricultural  exhibits  alone, 
without  the  disgusting  so-called  "attractions"  and 
fake  shows  that  characterize  so  many  American 
fairs.  A  change  is  coming  rapidly  in  this  country, 
brought  about  largely  by  the  representatives  of  tlie 
agricultural  press.  These  broad-minded,  hard- 
working gentlemen  have  had  and  continue  to  have 
in  a  greater  degree  than  ever  before  a  most  whole- 
some and  uplifting  influence  for  higher  ideals  in 
American  agriculture. 

311 


312  THE  POTATO 

The  selection  and  exhibition  of  potatoes  Is  a  fine 
art  in  England,  the  potato  being  one  of  the  princi- 
pal features  in  their  agricultural  shows.  Recent 
shows  in  this  country,  notably  the  Chicago  Land 
Shows  in  1909  and  1910  and  1911,  and  the  New 
York  Land  Show  of  1911,  have  had  most  creditable 
exhibits,  and  there  are  plans  now  under  way  for 
displays  better  and  more  elaborate  than  any  yet 
made.  During  the  next  decade  visitors  to  Ameri- 
can agricultural  fairs  will  see  remarkable  advances 
in  the  modern  potato. 

Exhibitions  of  the  past  have  been  a  factor  in 
increasing  the  demand  for  high-class  potatoes,  and 
in  the  future  will  be  an  even  greater  factor  in  mak- 
ing demand  and  increasing  per  capita  consump- 
tion. These  displays  show  discerning  people  that 
there  are  potatoes  and  potatoes,  the  same  as 
other  food  products,  and  they  teach  themselves 
to  distinguish  between  the  good,  bad,  and  in- 
different. 

The  work  of  preparing  potatoes  for  exhibit 
should  begin  with  the  selection  of  strong,  true-to- 
type  seed,  and  include  everything  that  is  correct  in 
cultural  methods.  A  deep,  mellow,  well-aired  seed 
bed  is  especially  important.  This  permits  the  tu- 
bers to  grow  naturally  and  evenly. 

At  digging  time  the  potatoes  are  either  carefully 
dug  with  a  fork,  or  selected  as  they  are  turned  out 
by  the  digger.  The  ground  should  be  perfectly  dry 
and  every  precaution  taken  to  prevent  bruising  and 
peeling.  This  is  particularly  important  when  the 
tubers  are  not  entirely  ripe. 

As  they  are  gathered  they  should  be  allowed  to 
remain  in  the  sun  only  long  enough  to  dry  and 
harden  the  skin  —  probably  two  or  three  hours. 
As  soon  as  thoroughly  dry,  the  potatoes  may  be 


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THE  POTATO  313 

carefully  brushed  with  a  soft  brush  —  to  remove  all 
dirt  and  dust  —  then  wrapped  in  soft  paper  and 
carefully  packed  in  slatted  crates.  If  potatoes  are 
left  in  the  sun  too  long  they  turn  green. 

Exhibition  potatoes  must  be  kept  in  a  cool,  dry 
place  and  should  be  examined  frequently  to  make 
sure  that  all  conditions  are  right.  The  kind  of 
potato  that  wins  in  the  shows  is  one  that  is  of  the 
greatest  commercial  value  —  a  smooth  even  tuber 
weighing  ten  to  sixteen  ounces,  with  clear,  disease- 
free  skin,  shallow  eyes,  and  the  lustre  and  bloom 
that  make  an  attractive  appearance.  It  must  be 
true  to  the  \}^e  of  the  variety,  and  each  potato  as 
nearly  like  the  others  as  possible. 

Shows  encourage  growers,  keep  old  varieties  dis- 
tinct and  bring  about  the  production  of  new  ones  of 
higher  quality  and  usefulness. 

The  big  overgrown  potato  is  no  longer  a  factor 
at  a  show  except  as  a  monstrosity. 

At  the  show,  the  ideas  of  the  exhibitor  as  regards 
attractive  display  make  the  individuality  of  the 
exhibit.  The  one  important  thing  to  keep  in  mind 
is  that  pretty  decorations  should  be  made  second- 
ary to  displaying  the  quality  and  uniformity  of 
the  potatoes.  Bushel  market  baskets  may  be  used 
to  advantage  in  display,  and  plates  are  sometimes 
used. 

A  large  quantity  of  potatoes,  displayed  in  a  pile 
or  against  a  wall,  impresses  the  observer  with  the 
idea  of  plenty,  and  that  they  must  come  from  a  big, 
rich  country  or  farm  that  is  well  adapted  to  the 
production  of  the  crop.  Such  a  display  is  espe- 
cially striking  when  in  the  same  show  there  are 
exhibits  consisting  of  only  two  or  three  specimens 
of  a  variety. 

At  the  English  and  Scotch  shows  very  fme  dis- 


314  THE  POTATO 

plays  are  made  by  tlie  big  seed  houses.  They 
show  big  banks  of  even  tubers  that  are  as  attrac- 
tive as  oranges  or  apples.  Retail  dealers  in  Great 
Britain  put  up  potatoes  for  sale  in  very  much 
more  attractive  shape  than  our  dealers,  thereby 
increasing  their  sales  and  the  consumption  of 
the  crop. 

Fruit  and  flower  shows  have  been  important 
factors  in  increasing  the  interest  in  and  demand 
for  these,  and  there  are  great  possibilities  both 
for  the  grower  and  exhibitor,  and  the  industry 
in  general  in  the  well-planned  exhibitions  of  po- 
tatoes. 

For  judging  potatoes  there  is  no  universal  scale 
of  points.  The  following  is  one  used  by  the  Weld 
County,  Colorado,  Farmers'  Club.  Greeley  is  the 
principal  town  in  this  county: 

SCORE    CARD    FOR    GREELEY   POTATOES 

Disqualifications:  For  show  or  first  three  mar- 
ket grades.  Screen  less  than  one  and  seven  eighths 
inches  in  clear.  INIany  knots.  Very  deep  eyes  or 
very  irregular  shape.  For  show,  any  mixture  of 
varieties;  for  market,  more  than  5  per  cent,  of 
same  color  or  2  per  cent,  of  different  color.  Color 
mottled,  splashed,  blue  or  purple.  Muddy.  Over 
15  per  cent,  scabby  or  wormy,  or  1  per  cent,  un- 
sound. One  fourth  hollow.  Sacks  not  neat, 
strong,  uniform  in  size.  Sacks  not  securely  sewed 
with  standard  sack  twine. 

Trueness  to  name  and  type  required,  but  judges 
are  instructed  to  favor  improvements  in  type.  No 
red  potato  to  score  as  high  on  color  as  a  white 
variety;  no  deep-eyed  or  long  potato  to  be  scored 
as  high  on  shape  as  if  round  and  smooth. 


THE  POTATO  315 

/.     Dealers'  Scale.     External  Examination 

{ Too  large 2 

Size  20            ]  Too  Small 12 

( Not  even 0 

Shape  10                10 

(  Not  bright 10 

Appearance  GO  -<  Dirty 10 

(  Scabby  or  wormy 40 

t^     \•^      in        j  Unsound 5 

Quahty  10       j  Brittle  or  spongy 5 

100 

//.     Filial  Purchasers'  Scale.     Knije  Examination 

Smoothness          5 

Pares  thin 10 

Flesh  white 5 

Soimd  and  not  hollow 5 

Cortical  layer  thick 10 

Centres  small  and  not  watery 15 

50 
///.     Consumers'  Scale.     Table  Quality 

Quickness  of  cooking 5 

Potatoes  cook  alike 10 

Mealiness 20 

Whiteness 5 

Grain  (mashed) 5 

Flavor       5 

50 

Four  potatoes  for  cooking  test  of  same  total  bulk 
for  each  lot  shall  be  put  into  white  pots  of  same 
shape  and  size,  covered  at  same  time  with  boihng 
water,  kept  boiling  evenly  until  done.  Set  one 
potato  aside  until  cold.  If  it  then  crumbles  on 
cutting  as  for  rewarming,  deduct  1  to  5  points  on 
mealiness.  Drain  and  season  alike  the  three  po- 
tatoes on  each  lot  with  same  (luanlity  of  sailed 


316  THE  POTATO 

cream,  mashed  the  same  number  of  strokes  with 

same  masher. 

Total  score.     Perfect  200 „ 

MARKET    GRADES 

Fancy    Potatoes.     One    variety    ripe,    sound, 
smooth,  clean,  bright,  even,  run  of  good  size,  true 
to  type,  not  over  5  per  cent.,  but  would  run  over 
screen  two  inches  in  clear: 

Choice  Potatoes.  One  variety,  ripe,  sound,  not 
over  5  per  cent,  scabby,  wormy  or  knotty;  fairly 
clean,  bright  and  even  in  size;  not  over  10  per  cent., 
but  would  run  over  screen  two  inches  in  clear. 

No.  1  Grade.  One  variety  with  not  over  5  per 
cent,  mixture  of  same  color,  or  2  per  cent,  of 
other  color;  fairly  ripe  for  date  of  shipment;  not 
over  15  per  cent,  scabby  or  wormy;  not  very  knotty 
or  muddy;  fair  size,  run  over  screen  one  and  seven 
eighths  inch  in  clear. 

No.  2  Grade.  Not  over  50  per  cent,  scabby, 
wormy,  knotty,  or  green;  not  over  5  per  cent, 
unsound  or  that  would  go  through  a  screen  one  and 
seven  eighths  inch  in  clear. 

The  grower  who  sorts  poorly,  or  uses  a  screen 
less  than  one  and  seven  eighths  inch  in  the  clear, 
or  who  does  not  throw  away  his  poor  sacks,  or  who 
fails  to  do  that  little  job  of  grading  and  to  provide 
that  foot  ditch  and  wasteway,  injures  his  neighbor 
even  more  than  himself. 

THE   CHICAGO   SCALE 

The  scale  which  follows  is  used  under  the  Chicago 
Produce  Reporter  System: 

Fancy  Potatoes  shall  be  known  as:  One  variety' 
true  to  name,  ripe,  sound,  smooth,  clean,  bright, 


THE  POTATO  317 

free  from  disease,  scab  and  second  growth,  uniform 
run  of  medium  to  large  size,  correct  shape  for  the 
variety  quoted,  with  none  but  would  run  over  a  one 
and  three  fourths  inch  screen,  and  not  over  5  per 
cent,  that  would  run  through  a  two-inch  screen 
for  round  varieties.  For  long  varieties  there  may 
be  20  per  cent,  that  would  run  through  a  two-inch 
screen. 

Choice  Potatoes  shall  be  known  as:  One  variety 
with  not  over  10  per  cent,  mixture,  but  all  of  one 
color,  ripe,  sound,  not  over  5  per  cent,  scabby, 
diseased  and  second  growth,  fairly  clean,  good 
color,  mediimi  to  fair  size  and  shape  for  variety 
quoted,  ^^'ith  none  but  w^ould  run  over  a  one  and 
one  half  inch  screen,  and  not  over  10  per  cent,  that 
would  run  through  a  one  and  three  fourths  inch 
screen  for  round  varieties.  For  long  varieties  there 
may  be  20  per  cent,  that  would  run  through  a  one 
and  three  fourths  inch  screen. 

Good  Potatoes  shall  be  the  same  as  Choice,  onlj' 
there  may  be  a  30  per  cent,  mixture  of  same  color, 
or  10  per  cent,  mixture  of  any  color  and  variety, 
fairly  well  matured,  according  to  season  shipped, 
and  not  over  15  per  cent,  scabbj'',  diseased  and 
rough,  fair  to  dark  color,  fair  size,  with  none  but 
would  run  over  a  one-inch  screen,  and  not  over 
15  per  cent,  that  would  run  through  a  one  and 
one  fourth  inch  screen,  w^ith  not  over  2  per  cent, 
unsound. 

Field  Run  Potatoes  should  be  practical!}^  sound, 
but  unassorted.  Dockage,  when  loading  potatoes. 
In  cases  w^here  the  percentage  of  dirt,  small,  infe- 
rior, green,  etc.,  potatoes  exceeds  the  allowance  in 
above  grades,  inspectors  may  make  said  stock  equal 
to  the  grade  quoted,  or  purchased,  by  such  dock- 
age as  they  consider  equitable. 


318  THE  POTATO 

The  section  from  w]ilch  the  potatoes  are  quoted, 
and  the  general  quahty  of  that  season's  crop  in  that 
section,  should  always  be  considered  in  connection 
with  grades;  not  as  really  changing  above  defini- 
tions, but  in  close  cases  inspectors  should  favor 
the  shipper  if  that  season's  general  crop  is  not  up 
to  the  average  quality,  or  favor  the  receiver  if  as 
good  or  better  than  usual. " 


CHAPTER  XXVII 

POTATO    SUPERSTITIONS   AND    PREJUDICES 

IIIERE  are  a  great  many  superstitions  and 
prejudices  in  regard  to  the  potato.  Some 
are  as  old  as  time  but,  generally  there  is  no 
good  reason  for  their  existence. 

Planting  "in  the  dark  of  the  moon"  is  a  popular 
fallacj^  Some  argue,  and  often  can  relate,  experi- 
ences that  to  them  seem  to  prove  that  potatoes 
will  not  make  a  satisfactory  crop  unless  planted 
during  that  part  of  the  month  when  the  moon  does 
not  shine.  If  planted  when  the  moon  shines  at 
night,  the  belief  is  that  the  plant  goes  "all  to  top" 
and  will  not  make  tubers.  Others  will  argue  that 
the  planting  should  be  done  "in  the  light  of  the 
moon"  in  order  to  give  the  plants  a  good  start, 
because  of  the  additional  light.  There  are  experi- 
ences to  prove  that  both  are  right.  There  is  of 
course  no  foundation  for  such  notions,  and  pota- 
toes make  good  crops  if  soil  and  moisture  condi- 
tions are  right,  regardless  of  the  moon. 

"Cutting  off  the  seed  end,"  or  terminal  bud,  is  a, 
practice  supposed  to  result  in  benefit  to  the  crop. 
The  young  potato  plant  is  started  and  nourished 
by  the  plant  food  stored  up  in  the  tuber.  To 
throw  away  any  part  of  the  potato  is  to  destroy 
food  that  could  be  used  to  advantage.  The  reason 
given  for  doing  it  is  to  keep  too  many  eyes  from 
starting,  but  experience  shows  that  if  the  seed  is 
strong  and  has  been  well  stored  and  handled,  the 

319 


320  THE  POTATO 

sprout  from  one  strong  bud  dominates  and  the 
others  remain  practicall}^  dormant.  The  terminal 
bud  is  the  one  found  first,  and  European  growers 
consider  it  the  most  important  part  of  the  seed 
tuber,  and  it  normally  starts  first. 

"Cutting  seed  to  one  eye,"  or  two  eyes,  or  some 
other  number,  is  supposed  by  some  to  carry  a 
mysterious  charm  that  will  affect  the  crop.  All 
there  can  be  of  importance  in  this  notion  is  that 
the  larger  the  seed  piece  the  greater  supply  of 
nutriment  available  for  starting  the  new  plant. 

"To  irrigate  when  potatoes  are  in  bloom"  is  a 
practice  relied  upon  by  growers  in  some  irrigated 
sections.  This  may  or  may  not  be  the  right  time, 
depending  on  the  condition  of  the  soil.  The  time 
to  irrigate  is  when  moisture  is  required  by  the 
plant,  regardless  of  anything  else. 

"Do  not  use  manure  on  potato  land,  it  makes 
scab,"  is  a  belief  so  strong  in  the  minds  of  some 
growers  that  the  crop  is  grown  continuously  on 
land  without  manuring  until  it  becomes  impover- 
ished. It  is  probably  true  that  fresh  manure  ap- 
plied to  land  immediately  preceding  the  planting 
of  potatoes  furnishes  conditions  favorable  to  the 
growth  of  the  scab  bacteria,  but  when  used  in  a 
rotation,  as  on  the  grass  crop  that  precedes  po- 
tatoes, manure,  especially  when  well  rotted,  is  a 
benefit.  Growers  in  Europe  place  great  depend- 
ence on  its  use. 

"To  plant  potatoes  on  Good  Friday"  is  beheved 
by  some  people  to  insure  the  crop,  regardless  of  the 
conditions.  If  all  conditions  are  right,  it  would  be 
as  well  to  plant  on  this  day  as  any  other,  but  no 
better.  Soil  and  climatic  conditions  must  be  the 
guide  for  time  of  planting. 

Color  and  shape  are  factors   that  govern  some 


THE  POTATO  321 

markets.  For  instance,  on  the  Pacific  coast  the 
demand  is  for  a  long,  white  potato;  Denver  and 
Colorado  Springs  pay  a  premium  for  red  potatoes; 
in  England,  kidney  shaped  varieties  are  in  highest 
favor,  and  nowhere  are  blue-skinned  varieties  pop- 
ular except  in  Spain.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  any 
good  potato  is  good  food ;  there  is  no  more  reason 
for  these  discriminating  prejudices  than  for  w^hite 
eggs  to  sell  higher  in  San  Francisco  than  brown, 
and  vice  versa  in  Boston. 

*'That  potatoes  grown  on  irrigated  land"  are  not 
of  good  quality  and  flavor  is  sometimes  believed. 

Moisture  is  one  of  the  essentials  in  the  produc- 
tion of  the  potato  crop,  and  with  irrigation  the 
supply  of  moisture  can  be  kept  even  and  sufficient 
to  grow  a  product  of  the  greatest  possible  uni- 
formity and  quality.  It  depends  entirely  on  the 
grower.  A  potato  grown  from  start  to  maturity 
without  a  check  is  produced  under  the  most  ideal 
conditions. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII 

RECENT  DEVELOPMENT  IN  NEW  AND  OLD  DISTRICTS 

IHE  acres  of  land  In  the  world  capable  of 
producing  crops  can  and  must  produce  a 
greater  annual  tonnage  of  food  in  order 
to  feed  the  people,  unless  there  be  some  unfore- 
seen calamity  to  stop  the  rate  of  increase  of  pop- 
ulation. 

The  production  must  be  mcreased  by  better 
methods  in  the  countries  now  producmg  the  great- 
est total  crops,  and  undeveloped  and  semi-devel- 
oped countries  and  districts  must  be  brought  up  to 
the  limit  of  their  producing  possibihties. 

That  the  potato  has  been  and  is  given  very  high 
consideration  in  Great  Britain  is  very  conclusively 
shown  in  the  article  bj^  David  Yomig  in  tlie  chap- 
ter on  "Seed  Stocks  and  Varieties." 

During  the  past  decade  more  attention  has  been 
paid  to  the  potato  in  America  tlian  at  any  period. 
This  interest  must  continue  because  of  the  mcreas- 
ing  iniiwrtance  to  the  world  of  all  food  crops. 

A  number  of  educational  factors  are  at  work  in 
this  country.  Among  these  are  the  agricultural 
colleges  and  experiment  stations,  the  farmers' 
institutes  and  the   great  transportation  interests. 

Great  good  has  been  accomplished  in  the  devel- 
opment of  districts  by  the  railroads.  It  is  true,  of 
course,  that  the  reason  for  this  is  the  increase  m 
tonnage,  but  the  result  has  been  of  great  benefit 
to  individual  growers. 

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THE  POTATO  323 

The  first  railroad  to  operate  a  special  potato 
instruction  train  was  the  Denver  Kio  (irande 
in  Colorado.  C.  H.  Sclilaacks,  now  vice-president 
of  the  Western  Pacific,  was  vice-president  of  the 
Rio  Grande  at  the  time  of  the  beginning  of  this 
work,  and  credit  is  due  him  for  its  initiation.  He 
was  the  first  man  in  America  to  grasp  the  great 
importance  of  this  work. 

The  first  train  consisted  of  five  cars,  carrying 
practical  growers  as  instructors,  specimen  imple- 
ments to  improve  crop  production,  and  approved 
types  of  seed.  The  train  travelled  over  the 
entire  system  — 1,700  miles.  In  five  years  the 
production  of  potatoes  in  this  territory  was  quad- 
rupled. 

D.  E.  Burley,  general  passenger  agent  of  the 
Oregon  Short  Line  Railroad,  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah, 
was  the  first  man  to  put  up  his  own  money  for 
prizes  for  the  best  potatoes  grown  in  his  territory. 
He  also  ran  a  special  potato  train  through  Utah 
and  Idaho  over  3,500  miles  of  railroad.  This  gave 
great  aid  to  potato  growers  in  a  big,  undeveloped 
territory.  His  work  in  the  interests  of  agriculture 
in  the  Northwest  is  far-reaching  in  its  effect. 

Following  are  the  blanks  and  other  documents 
used  in  the  Burley  contest: 

CONDITIONS  OF  BURLEY  POTATO  PRIZE  CONTEST 

YEAR  1910 

1.  Entries  to  be  filed  on  or  before  May  5,  1910. 

2.  No  more  than  one  crop  of  one  variety  of  potato  must  be 

grown  on  one  acre  (43,560  feet),  and  in  case  grower 
enters  more  than  one  acre,  separate  blanks  nmst  be 
filled  out  for  each  additional  acre. 

3.  The  hills  or  rows  must  be  at  least  twelve  inches  from  the 

boundary  lines  of  the  acre. 


324  THE  POTATO 

4.  The  contest  is  confined  to  the  four  following  varieties: 

Peachblow,  Rural  Type,  Netted  Gem,  or  Dalmeny 
Challenge. 

5.  The  land  must  be  surveyed  by  a  competent  engineer,  and 

satisfactory  proof  made. 

6.  "Planting  blanks"  will  be  furnished,  and  must  be  filled 

out  and  sent  to  D.  E.  Burley,  G.  P.  A.,  O.  S.  L.  R.  R. 
Co.  Salt  Lake  City,  two  weeks  after  potatoes  are 
planted. 

7.  D.  E.  Burley,  G.  P.  A.  O.  S.  L.  R.  R.  Co.,  Salt  Lake  City, 

must  be  notified  ten  days  before  potatoes  are  har- 
vested. 

8.  During  the  growing  season  inspection  of  the  potatoes 

may  be  made  at  any  time  by  representatives  of  the 
contributors. 

9.  The  first   prize  of  $500   will  be   awarded  to   the  acre 

producing  the  largest  tonnage  of  best  quality  market- 
able potatoes,  and  the  second  prize  of  $225  will  be 
awarded  to  the  next  best  acre. 

Prizes  are  personal  contributions  of  the  following: 


D.  E.  Burley,  Salt  Lake  City  .      . 

E.  M.  Heigho,  Weiser,  Idaho  . 
E.  H.  Dewey,  Nampa,  Idaho  . 
H.  E.  Dunn,  Payette,  Idaho  . 
D.  C.  MacWatters,  Milner,  Idaho 


$500.00 

100.00 

75.00 

25.00 

25.00 


ENTRY  BLANK  FOR  BURLEY  POTATO  COMPETITION, 

YEAR  1910 

Name  of  Grower 

Location 

Town 

County 

State 

Section 

Township 

Range 

Variety  to  be  grown 

Character  of  soil 

Probable  date  of  planting 


I'lwlo  Copyright  l>y  I'ach  l-ro,. 

JAMES  J.   HILL 

An  empire  bulkier  wlio  early  realized  llic  imporlaiice  of  agrieulture 

to  Iraiisporlatioii  iiileresLs 


Eugene  H.  Grulib.  who  conducted  the  tirst  potato  instruction  train 

in  America 


THE  rOTATO  323 

PLANTING    RECORD   OF   BURLEY    POTATO 
COMPETITION,    YEAR    1910 

Name 

Location 

Variety  to  be  grown 

Character  of  soil 

Fertilizer  used,  if  any 

Crop  in  land  previous  year 

Crop  in  land  second  year  previous 

Crop  in  land  third  year  previous 

When  was  ground  plowed 

What  was  subsequent  preparation  of  land 

When  were  potatoes  planted 

How  were  potatoes  planted  (by  machinery  or  by  hand) .... 

Depth  of  planting 

Number  of  rows  planted  on  acre 

Distance  of  rows  apart 

Distance  hills  apart  in  rows 

Number  of  hills  per  acre 

Size  of  seed 

IRRIGATION   AND   CULTIVATION   RECORD   OF   BURLEY 
POTATO    COMPETITION,    YEAR    1910 

Name 

Location 

Variety  to  be  gro^\^l 

Character  of  soil 

WTien  cultivated 

How  deep 

Number  of  times  irrigated 

Kind  of  cultivator  used 

When  ditched  for  irrigation 

Date 

How  deep 

How  high  and  how  wide  were  ridges  made,  if  any 


326         THE  POTATO 

HARVESTING  RECORD  OF  BURLEY  POTATO  COMPETITION, 

YEAR,    1910 

Name 

Location 

"\^ariety 

Plot  measured  by engineer 

Date  of  harvesting 

How  harvested  (by  machinery  or  hand) 

Yield 

State  of      ) 
County  of  f  ^^' 

AFFIDAVIT 

We and 

being  residents  of  the  county  and  state  aforesaid,  hereby 

certify  that  on  the day  of 

1910,  we  were  each  personally  present  at 

the  digging  of  one  acre  of 

potatoes  planted  and  owned  exclusively  bj^ 

at  or  near  the  city  of county  of 

and  state  of 

that  the  said  potatoes  were  weighed,  sacked  and  sealed  in 

our  presence;  that  they  were  of  a  total  weight  of 

pounds  and  that  they  were  all  raised  on  and  taken  from  one 
acre  of  ground  only. 

We  further  certify  and  declare  that  we  a''e  in  no  way  or 
manner  interested  financially  or  otherwise  in  the  outcome  of 
this  contest. 


Subscribed  and  sworn  to  before  me  this , 

day  of 1910. 


Notary  Public. 


THE  POTATO  327 

ANNOUNCEMENT    OF   AWARDS   IN   POTATO   PRIZE   CONTEST 

FIRST  PRIZE,  $500 

To  Mu.  L.  A.  Snyder, 
Twin  Falls,  Twin  Fulls  County,  Idaho 

Variety,  "Dulmcny  Challenge" 

Gross  weight      ....   38,085  pounds     044.75  bushels 
Less  culls 4,150  pounds 

Marketable       .      .      .   34,535  pounds     575.5  bushels 

SECOND  PRIZE,  $225 

To  Mr.  W.  B.  Gilmore, 
Payette,  Canyon  County,  Idaho 

Variety,  "Peachblow" 

Gross  weight 37,470  pounds 

Less  culls 3,920  pounds 

Marketable 33,556  pounds 

A  description  of  the  methods  by  which  the  Snyder  pota- 
toes were  grown  is  given  in  the  "  Idaho  "  chapter. 

The  development  of  any  industry  should  first 
follow  the  lines  of  least  resistance.  For  this  rea- 
son, a  prospective  grower  in  search  of  a  location 
would  find  the  opportunities  very  attractive  in  the 
many  good  valleys  throughout  the  intermountaiu 
region  of  the  western  part  of  the  United  States. 
As  has  been  indicated  elsewhere,  the  climatic  con- 
ditions are  such  that  produce  the  wild  potato. 
In  these  districts,  where  irrigation  is  possible  and 
the  soil  conditions  are  right,  the  highest  quality  of 
product  can  be  produced  at  the  lowest  possible 
cost. 

In  succeeding  chapters,  the  potato  industry  in 
various  districts,  is  taken  up  in  detail. 


CHAPTER  XXIX 

NORTH   ATLANTIC   STATES 

A  REPORT  of  the  potato  industry  in  Maine 
and  New  York  is  given  as  typical   of   the 
states  covered  in  this  classification. 
The  potato  is  an  excellent  rotation  crop  on  a 
general  farm  in  this  territory,  and  there  are  dis- 
tricts in  it  that  produce  as  fine  seed  potatoes  as  are 
grown  in  the  world. 

MAINE 

The  following  article  is  by  Mr.  E.  L.  Cleveland, 
of  Houlton,  Maine,  one  of  the  best  potato  author- 
ities in  America: 

*' Aroostook  County,  Maine,  covers  an  area 
equal  to  that  of  the  state  of  Massachusetts, 
growing  and  shipping  annually  approximately 
30,000  car  loads,  or  about  18,000,000  bushels  of 
potatoes. 

"By  reason  of  its  northern  latitude,  and  the 
virgin  soil  in  which  the  potatoes  are  grown,  they 
inherit  those  staple  and  vigorous  qualities  which 
make  them  at  once  the  best  and  most  valuable  seed 
obtainable,  as  well  as  the  most  desirable  table  pota- 
toes known  to  the  general  trade. 

"The  most  improved  methods  and  machinery 
are  here  used,  and  probably  no  potato-growing 
county  within  any  state  in  the  Union  can  show 

328 


THE  POTATO  320 

such  marked  prosperity  or  satisfactory  results  as 
those  which  obtain  in  Aroostook. 

"Some  forty  different  sorts  are  grown,  which, 
with  the  exception  of  the  main  crop  table  varieties. 
Green  Mountains,  and  two  or  three  others,  are 
used  almost  wholly  for  seed  purposes,  and  dis- 
tributed from  New  England  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 

"The  industry  of  potato  growing  in  Aroostook 
began  to  develop  in  the  early  '70's,  when  it  was 
found  the  soil  was  especially  well  adapted  to  the 
raising  of  fine  flavored  and  mealy  table  potatoes  as 
well  as  the  most  vigorous  and  virile  seed,  and  the 
demand  quickly  became  general  and  pronounced. 

"The  soil  in  the  main  is  of  a  rich,  gravelly  loam, 
underlying  which  there  is  a  strata  of  lime  deposit. 
This  gradually  disintegrates  where  near  to  or 
exposed  to  the  surface,  and  thoroughly  impreg- 
nates the  soil,  so  that  it  becomes  ideal  for  the  grow- 
ing and  maturing  of  the  Irish  potato. 

"Any  up-to-date  farmer  that  practises  good 
farming  and  adopts  improved  methods  frequently 
has  under  cultivation  100  acres  or  more,  and  counts 
on  a  yield  of  not  less  than  275  to  300  bushels  per 
acre,  according  to  varieties  used  and  prevailing  local 
conditions,  and  it  may  here  be  stated  that  good 
farming  in  Aroostook  implies  proper  rotation,  and 
this  in  turn  means  to  grow  potatoes  not  more  tlum 
two  seasons  in  succession  on  the  same  land,  supply- 
ing nitrogen  with  clover,  alfalfa,  or  other  nitrogen- 
ous plant  food  as  rotation  is  made,  together  with  a 
sufiicient  amount  of  humus. 

"It  may  here  be  stated  that  improved  methods 
of  cultivation  as  well  as  conservation  of  soil  re- 
sources are  being  sought  for  and  closely  followed 
where  proved  valuable.  Of  course  commercial 
fertilizers  are  still  being  largely  used.     They  luivc 


330  THE  POTATO 

no  doubt  been  used  too  much  in  the  past,  but  intel- 
hgent  farmers  are  coming  to  reahze  that  more  fre- 
quent rotation,  together  with  an  adequate  supply  of 
nitrogen  and  humus  to  be  grown  on  the  land  with 
stated  periods  of  rest,  is  vastly  more  profitable  for 
a  series  of  years.  These  matters  are  being  earn- 
estly discussed  by  the  different  granges  and  farmers' 
ckibs,  to  the  end  that  the  best  and  most  approved 
methods  may  be  practised. 

"With  the  beginning  of  digging  and  harvesting 
of  the  crop  (about  Sept.  1st),  the  potatoes  are 
usually  sorted  in  the  field,  the  merchantable  stock 
being  taken  direct  to  the  shipping  station  or  to  the 
farmer's  cellars,  according  to  his  idea  of  the  then 
prevailing  market,  and  the  small  and  refuse  stock, 
to  the  starch  factories,  of  which  there  are  some 
sixty  odd  in  the  county.  The  price  obtained  for 
this  starch  material  is  of  course  somewhat  elastic, 
according  to  the  value  of  the  finished  product,  but 
at  all  events  there  is  no  waste  allowed,  and 
frequently  the  amount  received  is  such  as  to 
materially  add  to  the  net  profits  of  the  farm 
operation. 

"Where  the  farmer  gTows  a  larger  quantity  than 
he  has  storage  for,  a  part  of  his  crop  is  hauled 
direct  to  the  shipping  station,  where  cash  is  paid 
on  a  basis  of  the  prevailing  markets,  less  freight 
charges,  and  a  fair  compensation  to  the  buyer  and 
shipper  for  the  amount  of  labor  required  in  the 
marketing  and  handling  of  same. 

"Such  a  part  of  his  crop  as  he  decides  to  hold  for 
later  marketing  is  usually  stored  in  an  outdoor 
farm  cellar,  built  especially  for  the  purpose,  and 
to  be  hauled  during  the  winter  at  leisure,  accord- 
ing to  his  idea  of  what  the  market  may  afford  as 
the  season  advances. 


THE  POTATO  331 

"The  buyer  or  shipper  owns  or  controls  large 
storehouses  at  the  difFerent  shipping  stations,  and 
the  stock  he  purchases  is  promptly  forwarded  to 
the  different  markets  in  full  carloads  or  held  in 
storage,  according  also  to  his  judgment  and  knowl- 
edge of  the  markets,  visible  supply,  and  the  law  of 
supply  and  demand,  with  the  result  that  the  im- 
mense track  storehouses  are  often  completely 
filled  during  harvesting,  to  be  gradually  emptied 
according  to  demand  later  in  the  season,  artificially 
heated  cars  being  used  as  weather  conditions  de- 
mand. 

'*The  construction  of  these  storehouses  is  such 
that  they  are  practically  frost  proof.  In  fact,  some 
of  the  more  thoroughly  built  seldom,  if  ever,  use 
artificial  heat. 

"Such  varieties  as  are  to  be  used  for  seed  pur- 
poses are  carefully  assorted  and  placed  in  large  Vv  ell 
ventilated  bins,  the  light  excluded  and  tempera- 
ture kept  at  as  low  a  point  as  outside  conditions 
will  admit  of  and  be  safe. 

"The  seed  shipments  begin  to  move  into  more 
southern  territory  with  December,  and  continue 
for  six  months  or  more,  gradually  working  north 
with  the  advance  of  the  season,  until  the  New 
England  States  are  supplied.  In  the  meantime  of 
course  the  main  crop,  or  table  varieties,  are  being 
moved  out  to  the  many  different  markets,  this  part 
of  the  business  beginning  with  harvesting,  and 
continuing  for  ten  months  or  more.  Indeed,  slii])- 
ments  are  generally  made  every  month  in  the  year, 
though  of  course  very  light  in  July  and  August. 

"The  future  of  potato  growing  in  Aroostook 
should  be  regarded  as  in  no  sense  problematical. 
With  a  large  part  of  the  county  still  undeveloped 
agriculturally,  a  soil  admittedly  almost  ideal  for 


332  THE  POTATO 

the  production  of  the  Irish  potato  at  its  best, 
improved  methods  and  a  quahty  continually  being 
bettered,  a  rolling  surface  well  adapted  to  the  use 
of  improved  farm  machinery,  and  a  product  that 
of  itself  cannot  be  matched  for  either  seed  pur- 
poses or  table  use,  together  with  competing  trans- 
portation lines  to  tidewater,  the  next  decade  should 
see  the  present  output  more  than  doubled.  '* 

The  following  interesting  mf ormation  is  from  the 
Bangor  Aroostook  Railroad,  Bangor,  Maine: 

"Maine  has  long  been  famous  for  its  wealth  of 
timber-lands,  its  summer  resorts  and  great  game 
country.  The  preeminence  of  the  Aroostook  po- 
tato is  winning  for  the  state  new  and  constantlj^ 
increasing  fame.  Because  of  the  remarkable  yield 
and  exceptional  quality  of  the  crops,  the  Aroostook 
potato  country  has  come  to  be  known  as  the  gar- 
den spot  of  New  England,  and  in  many  ways  it  is 
attracting  more  attention  than  any  other  agricul- 
tural section  of  the  country. 

*'The  Aroostook  potato  is  known  the  country 
over.  Millions  of  bushels  are  shipped  to  Boston, 
New  York,  and  other  centres  for  domestic  use,  while 
thousands  of  carloads  are  called  for  from  all  parts 
of  the  country  for  seed  purposes.  Wherever  it  is 
planted  the  Aroostook  potato  varieties  retain  the 
characteristics  which  have  made  them  famous,  and 
they  also  adapt  themselves  to  conditions  of  soil 
and  climate  supposedly  much  different  from  those 
of  Maine.  In  Virginia,  for  instance,  where  the 
paramount  object  is  to  hasten  the  early  crop,  the 
Aroostook  potato  matures  from  a  week  to  a  fort- 
night earlier  than  other  varieties. 

"The  development  of  the  Aroostook  country,  a 


THE  POTATO  333 

great  area  of  4,000,000  acres,  has  gone  hand  In 
hand  with  the  expansion  of  the  Bangor  &  Aroos- 
took Railroad,  and  it  is  by  this  road  that  the  pota- 
toes are  sent  forward  to  the  metropoHtan  markets. 
Although  the  number  of  new  farms  increases  each 
year,  there  are  still  thousands  of  acres  of  desirable 
land.  Aroostook  has  seen  a  marvellous  growth  in 
the  past  decade  —  a  growth  which  bids  fair  to  be 
even  more  remarkable  within  the  next  few  years. 
Dozens  of  stations  along  the  line  of  the  Bangor  & 
Aroostook  Railroad  are  potato  shipment  points 
for  farmers,  while  the  thriving  towns  of  Houlton, 
Presque  Isle,  Caribou,  and  Fort  Fairfield  sent  out 
hundreds  of  potato  trains  each  season. 

"The  standard  size  of  the  Aroostook  farm  is  the 
regulation  160  acres.  At  the  present  time  this  is 
considered  a  large  farm.  Near  any  of  the  business 
centres  of  the  county,  in  a  locality  easily  accessible 
to  a  railroad  shipping  point,  under  good  cultivation 
and  with  ample  buildings,  such  a  farm  will  range  in 
market  value  from  $10,000  to  $20,000  according  to 
the  percentage  of  good  potato  producing  land  it 
contains.  The  buildings  on  an  Aroostook  farm 
must  comprise,  among  other  things,  ample  barn 
room  for  the  storage  of  hay  and  grain,  a  good  frost- 
proof potato  storehouse  capable  of  holding  from 
2,000  to  3,000  barrels.  The  equipment  must  in- 
clude all  appliances  for  planting,  cultivating  and 
harvesting  the  potato  and  other  crops,  such  as 
seeders,  planters,  diggers,  sprayers,  mowing  and 
reaping  machinery,  etc.  Usually  from  four  to  six 
heavy  draft  horses  are  required,  and  the  invest- 
ment outside  of  the  land  runs  from  $2,000  to  $3,000 
and  many  times  much  more. 

"The  average  price  of  good,  cleared  land  in 
Aroostook,  well  located  and  under  good  culti\'ation 


334  THE  POTATO 

is  not  far  from  $100  an  acre.  The  appreciation  in 
value  of  Aroostook  farm  land  has  been  steady  since 
the  beginning  of  the  potato  raising  industry,  and 
particularly  marked  since  the  opening  of  the  Ban- 
gor &  Aroostook  Railroad,  as  has  also  been  the 
increase  in  wealth  and  population  in  almost  all 
sections  of  the  county.  Within  fifteen  years,  or 
covering  the  period  the  railroad  has  been  in  oper- 
ation, many  towns  have  doubled  their  population 
and  trebled  their  valuation. 

"The  phenomenal  success  of  farming  in  Aroos- 
took from  the  financial  viewpoint  has  been  a  strong 
magnet  in  attracting  the  public  eye.  Numberless 
instances  can  be  pointed  out  where  successful 
potato  growers  have  risen  from  smallest  beginnings 
to  possessors  of  considerable  wealth.  Statistics 
show  that  in  no  section  in  the  country  is  the  potato 
yield  greater  per  acre  than  in  Aroostook  and  also 
that  as  a  class  the  farmers  are  nowhere  more 
prosperous. 

"The  energetic  and  enterprising  methods  of 
farming  in  Aroostook  County  suggest  strongly  the 
widely  commended  Western  spirit.  Farms  are 
conducted  as  business  establishments.  Modern 
methods  are  employed  and  buildings,  equipment 
and  paraphernalia  are  orderly,  well-kept  and  al- 
ways up-to-date.  For  the  person  whose  idea  of  a 
farm  is  the  depressing  picture  of  the  oft  talked  of 
'  abandoned '  farm,  a  visit  to  Aroostook  County  will 
be  a  joyful  awakening. 

"The  Aroostook  farmer  believes  in  having  every 
possible  city  advantage.  He  believes  in  making 
life  worth  living.  His  crops  make  it  possible  for 
him  to  follow  this  idea.  A  trip  through  Aroostook 
is  replete  with  interest  whether  it  be  in  the  summer 
when  the  fields  of  blossoming  potato  plants  stretch 


THE  POTATO  335 

far  away  beyond  the  reach  of  the  eye  or  at  the  har- 
vest time  when  the  farms  take  on  a  new  activity. 
The  mechanical  potato  digger  has  revohitionized 
the  work  and  the  crops  are  taken  from  the  ground 
in  surprisingly^  quick  time.  Potato  growing  in 
Aroostook  is  already  a  business  of  big  proportions 
and  the  constant  development  promises  to  make 
it  one  of  the  greatest  agricultural  industries  in  the 
country." 

During  the  winter  of  1910  the  senior  author 
visited  the  Aroostook  district,  and  his  impressions 
follow : 

This  one  county  is  like  a  Colorado  county  in  area. 
It  is  on  the  northern  boundary  of  Maine  and  bor- 
ders on  Canada. 

Apparently  the  whole  idea  of  the  farmers  in  the 
county  is  centred  on  the  growing  of  potatoes  to 
the  exclusion  of  all  other  crops  as  much  as  possible. 
The  potato  dominates  every  sentiment  and  idea. 
It  is  the  sole  topic  of  conversation  where  two  or 
more  men  are  gathered  together.  They  are  apt  to 
be  discussing  machinery  and  wagons  for  potatoes 
and  the  cultivation  of  potatoes.  And  you  see  men 
haulmg  potatoes  in  every  direction  in  barrels 
to  and  from  warehouses,  from  farms  to  markets. 
They  talk  of  them  in  the  streets,  in  the  offices  and 
in  the  banks;  and,  I  have  no  doubt,  in  the  schools 
and  churches,  and  even  in  their  sleep.  At  Car- 
bondale  and  Greeley,  Col.  they  think  and  talk 
of  other  things  than  potatoes,  because  their 
crops  are  diversified.  At  Houlton,  ^Nlaine,  the  cen- 
tre of  the  potato  work,  is  the  only  place  where  I 
have  been  talked  to  a  standstill  on  the  subject  of 
potatoes.  I  never  met  people  who  were  so  eager 
for  knowledge  m  comicction  with  potatoes. 


336  THE  POTATO 

The  yield  in  this  district  is  three  times  that  of 
any  single  district  in  the  United  States  and  quite 
double  that  of  the  irrigated  states 

Mr.  E.  L.  Cleveland,  pioneer  and  father  of  the 
seed  potato  industry  in  Houlton,  Maine,  has  for  the 
past  thirty  years  been  growing  seed  potatoes  for 
shipment  over  the  United  States,  but  largely  for 
the  Southern  market.  They  are  growing  sixty 
varieties  of  pure  seed  and  their  shipments  amount 
to  from  eighty  to  one  hundred  thousand  barrels  an- 
nually. 

Their  growing  season  is  very  short,  much  shorter 
than  w^e  have  in  Colorado.  It  is  only  about  one 
hundred  days  between  killing  frosts  from  June  to 
September.  The  first  week  of  April  the  fields  were 
still  covered  with  snow  and  it  was  known  as  a  mild 
winter  and  a  light  snowball.  They  almost  univer- 
sally practise  fall  plowing  owing  to  their  short  sea- 
son. They  plant  their  potatoes  much  closer  than 
we  do  in  Colorado,  rows  from  twenty-eight  to 
thirty  inches  apart,  and  the  hills  from  ten  to  twelve 
inches  apart.  This  method  produces  more  uni- 
form and  smaller  potatoes  than  are  grown  in  the 
irrigated  West.  They  use  about  700  pounds  of 
very  small,  cut  seed  to  the  acre. 

The  implements  for  cultivation  are  very  similar 
to  those  used  in  the  best  districts  of  Colorado. 

Owing  to  their  lack  of  livestock  they  have  little 
or  no  barnyard  muck.  They  place  their  whole 
reliance  on  commercial  fertilizers  and  it  is  from  this 
and  the  extravagant  use  of  it  that  gives  them  such 
wondrous  results  in  eclipsing  other  potato  com- 
munities, but  the  cost  has  been  high.  They  com- 
menced the  use  of  commercial  fertilizers  twelve  or 
fifteen  years  ago,  using  400  to  500  pounds  per  acre 
at  a  cost  of  $7.50  per  acre.     They  have  been  com- 


THE  POTATO  337 

pelled  to  increase  this  amount  from  year  lo  year, 
and  to  date  they  are  using  1,800  to  2,000  pounds 
per  acre.  This,  coupled  with  the  expense  of  spray- 
ing with  Bordeaux  mixture  two  or  three  times  in 
the  season  and  the  added  expense  of  combating  the 
potato  beetle,  brings  the  expense  of  growing  po- 
tatoes to  from  $70  to  $75  an  acre,  but  a  yield  of  240 
bushels  per  acre  is  produced. 

These  lands  are  valued  at  $80  to  $120  an  acre,  and 
the  tenant  farmers  pay  $10  to  $20  an  acre  rent  for 
growing  potatoes,  according  to  the  richness  of  the 
soil  and  distance  to  railways. 

Their  proximity  to  large  and  populous  cities,  the 
cheap  and  rapid  transportation  facilities,  with  the 
splendid  edible  qualities  of  their  potatoes  (that 
their  natural  soil  and  climatic  conditions  give),  as- 
sures them  a  good  business. 

The  growers  of  this  district  can,  however,  well 
pay  more  attention  to  livestock  and  diversified 
farming  in  connection  with  their  potato  work. 

POTATO   CULTURE   IN   NEW   YORK   STATE 

The  information  that  follows  is  by  Mr.  T.  E. 
Martin,  Superintendent  of  Demonstration  Farms 
of  the  New  York  Central  Lines. 

''For  best  results  in  potato  culture  in  New  York 
State  tile  drainage  is  as  much  of  a  necessity  in  soils 
that  contain  excess  water  as  is  plant  food. 

"In  my  personal  experience  at  farming  in  west- 
ern New  York,  thirteen  miles  south  of  Rochester, 
latitude  43  degrees,  elevation  550  feet,  fifty-seven 
acres,  Dunkirk  series  of  soil,  a  thorough  drainage 
system  of  3,265  rods  (over  ten  miles)  was  estab- 
lished at  a  cost  of  about  $2,000.     This  work  was 


338  THE  POTATO 

done  under  adverse  and  hostile  conditions  while 
carrying  a  heavy  mortgage  on  unfertile  soil  much 
against  the  proffered  advice  of  self-appointed  au- 
thorities and  established  doctrines.  However,  the 
drainage  has  paid  for  itself  several  times  over. 

*'As  sweet  memories  of  quality  and  good  work 
linger  long  after  the  cost  is  forgotten,  it  is  there- 
fore essential  that  only  the  best  thought,  effort, 
and  material  be  allowed  to  predominate.  There 
is  no  work  of  importance  in  which  this  truth  is 
more  applicable  than  in  tile  drainage,  because  of  its^ 
permanency,  as  everlasting  as  the  hills.  Often  the 
first  crop  increase  from  potatoes  repays  the  entire 
expenditure,  together  with  handsome  annual  re- 
turns and  a  heritage  imperishable  handed  down  to 
posterity  more  valuable  the  one  hundredth  year 
than  the  first. 

"All  sewer  pipe  and  round  tile  were  used.  No 
boards  under  pipe.  Mains  are  two  to  four  inches 
lower  than  laterals.  Drains  are  of  good  length  and 
depth  and  so  placed  that  the  drainage  reaches 
laterally  from  drain  to  drain  on  time.  Standing 
water  is  fatal  to  the  potato  yield.  Three-inch 
lateral  drains  are  placed  fifty -five  feet  apart  and 
four  feet  deep.  Some  soils  need  aeration  as  much 
as  others  require  drainage.  For  such  four-inch 
tile  give  better  eflSciency.  The  drainage  usually 
costs  50  cents  per  rod,  or  $25  per  acre.  Intakes  are 
provided  with  silt  basins.  Outlets  and  intakes  are 
established  in  cement  abutments.  Special  screen 
pipe  prevents  animals  or  trash  from  entering.  Ac- 
curate location  maps  give  all  data  in  detail. 
Horses  and  an  ordinary  three-horse  plow  were  used 
for  the  opening  and  closing  of  drains.  Under 
average  conditions  a  traction  ditcher  will  lessen  the 
cost  one  third  to  one  half. 


THE  POTATO  339 

We  attribiiLc  to  drainfige  largely  the  gradual 
increasing  pot<xto  yields  of  sixty  bushels  in  1892  to 
an  average  of  417  bushels  per  acre,  or  7,510  bushels 
on  eighteen  acres  in  190G.     No  irrigation. 

"Crop  rotation  is  a.  three-year  one,  growing 
aniuially  eighteen  acres  each  of  wheat,  clover,  and 
potatoes.  The  last  of  September  or  early  October, 
after  potatoes  are  harvested,  the  potato  vines  are 
raked  and  burned  to  destroy  lurking  disease,  the 
ground  twice  disked,  leveled  with  spring-tooth  har- 
row and  sown  to  Klondike  wheat. 

"The  spring  following  from  April  1st  to  10th, 
when  certain  conditions  are  present  and  favor- 
able and  the  wheat  ground  is  well  checked  up, 
one  half  bushel  of  high  grade  medium  red  clover 
and  alfalfa  seed,  previously  carefully  mixed,  is 
sown  per  acre  with  a  broadcaster,  preferably  dur- 
ing afternoons,  when  the  surface  is  dry.  Experi- 
ence only  teaches  when  these  conditions  exist. 
The  next  forenoon  a  three-section,  lever-sets,  spike- 
tooth  harrow,  teeth  set  straight  up  and  down,  is 
run  over  the  field.  Teeth  should  be  sharp.  Such 
valuable  seed  should  be  covered  as  much  as  garden 
seeds. 

"From  1907  to  1909  six  and  three  fourths  bush- 
els clover  and  two  and  one  fourth  bushels  alfalfa 
were  sown  —  a  75  and  25  per  cent,  mixture;  1910- 
1912  four  and  one  half  bushels  each,  equal  parts, 
or  50  per  cent,  of  each  has  been  and  will  be  used; 
1913-1915  the  mixture  will  be  25  and  75  respec- 
tively, just  the  reverse  of  first  three-year  cycle; 
1916  and  following,  alfalfa  only  will  be  grown.  No 
lime  or  inoculation  has  been  used.  The  former  is 
dangerous  in  a  short  potato  rotation.  All  things 
being  equal  alfalfa  gives  us  more  hay  the  following 
year  at  first  cutting  than  clover.     Second  cutting 


340  THE  POTATO 

has  decidedly  more  alfalfa,  and  third  cutting  is  all 
gain.  Besides,  the  alfalfa  is  richer  both  as  a  feed 
and  soil  enricher.     Roots  are  larger  and  go  deeper. 

"  First  crop  of  hay  is  cut  June  15th  to  25th,  and 
put  up  for  feedmg  and  sale  purposes.  Several  times 
the  first  crop  was  left  on  knolls  and  thin  places.  If 
first  crop  was  heavy  and  hay  cheap  the  second  crop 
was  cut  August  1st  and  left  on  the  ground  for  the  fol- 
lowing potato  crop,  and  it  pays  as  well  as  livestock 
feeding,  with  little  work  connected  thereto.  Third 
crop  is  cut  middle  of  September  and  always  left 
on  the  land.  Teed  the  land  and  the  crop  will  feed 
you.  *  Cutting  is  preferred,  as  stray  weeds  are  de- 
stroyed. The  next  crop  comes  up  through  this 
mass  of  organic  matter  and  it  decomposes  sooner. 
Next  year  as  a  moisture  retainer  it  has  valuable 
qualities. 

"Manure  from  the  stock,  four  horses  and  two 
cows,  is  made  in  box  stalls  and  drawn  direct  to  the 
field  and  spread  on  the  thin  places  on  the  clover 
and  alfaKa.  No  straw  is  sold.  The  surplus  is 
spread  and  plowed  under. 

"Potato  ground  is  fall-plowed  ten  inches  deep. 
In  springtime  the  field  is  prepared  with  a  four- 
horse,  double-acting,  cutaway  harrow,  which  is  run 
over  field  four  times,  lengthwise,  diagonally  twice, 
and  crosswise  lastly,  and  leveled  with  the  spring- 
tooth  harrow. 

"For  available  fertility  we  rely  mainly  on  drain- 
age, preparation,  tillage,  clover  and  alfalfa  and  the 
farm  manure. 

"Commercial  fertilizers  were  first  used  in  1901, 
increasing  from  400  to  1,500  pounds  of  4,  8,  and  12 
per  cent,  in  1907,  costing  $32  per  ton  for  home- 
mixed  goods,  using  nitrate  of  soda,  blood,  tankage, 
bone,  14  percent,  rock,  and  sulphate  of  potash.    A 


THE  POTATO  341 

careful  farmer  can  mix  fertilizer  constituents  as 
perfectly  as  the  elaborate  mixing  machinery  does 
in  a  large  fertilizer  factory.  Home  mixing  costs 
about  50  cents  per  ton,  and  the  saving  ranges  from 
$2  to  $8  per  ton.  A  better  and  purer  grade  of 
goods  is  secured  with  no  filler  in  them,  conse- 
quently no  worthless  stuff.  The  fertilizer  is  ap- 
plied with  an  eleven-hoe  grain  and  fertilizer  drill, 
preferably  between  the  first  and  second  cutaway 
work.  Tests  have  been  made  with  the  various 
fertilizer  ingredients  separately  and  in  combina- 
tion in  varying  quantities.  On  our  farm  potash 
paid  the  best.  Fertilizers  used  in  connection  with 
a  good  supplj^  of  organic  matter  in  the  soil  gives 
better  results. 

"If  wheat  lodges,  that  is  an  indication  of  alack 
of  potash.  Dw^arfish  growth  signifies  lack  of  ni- 
trogen, shrunken  grain  shows  lack  of  phosphoric 
acid.  However,  the  only  sure  way  to  determine 
such  questions  is  to  test  out  the  fertilizer  in  plats 
and  let  the  behavior  of  the  plants  and  results  deter- 
mine which  form  of  plant  food  will  pay  best  to 
invest  in.  Excessive  growth  of  potato  vines  with 
few  potatoes  represents  a  shortage  of  potash. 

"The  past  spring  (1911)  the  fertilizer  was  cut 
down  to  800  pounds  per  acre,  using  the  minerals 
only,  lOj  per  cent,  phosphoric  acid  and  12J  per- 
cent, potash,  costing  $20  per  ton. 

"Good,  healthy,  vigorous  potato  seed  is  one  of 
the  most  important  factors  in  the  growing  of  the 
crop;  and  the  simple  fact  about  it  is  that  every 
farmer  can  have  such  first-class  seed  stock  by  a 
little  extra  study  and  work;  by  land  digging,  for  a 
start,  say  500  to  1,000  hills  of  potatoes,  where  they 
are  the  best  in  the  field,  and  selecting  individual 
high  yielding  hills  for  next  year's  seed  and  breed- 


342  THE  POTATO 

ing.  By  hand  digging  and  rejecting  the  low  yield- 
ing hills  next  year  and  years  following,  a  good 
variety  of  potato  is  found  to  gain  both  in  quality 
and  quantity  from  10  to  50  per  cent.  This  is  worth 
looking  into.  Up-to-date  authorities  and  live- 
stock breeders  do  not  perpetuate  the  scrubs.  If 
there  is  an  abiding  law  in  the  animal  kingdom,  there 
certainly  is  a  similar  one  in  the  vegetable.  Vio- 
lation of  this  and  similar  laws  invariably  brings 
disaster. 

"Do  potatoes  run  out?  They  surely  do.  There 
is  no  question  about  it,  but  it  is  man's  standard  of 
seed  selection  and  culture  that  'runs  down  and 
out.'  The  following  are  some  of  the  causes  of 
potatoes  deteriorating:  (1)  Wet,  infertile  soil,  (2) 
half  preparation  and  fertilization,  (3)  late  planting, 
(4)  first  sprouts  destroyed,  (5)  diseased  stock,  (6) 
low  vitality,  (7)  poor  storage. 

"Another  way  is  to  maintain  an  annual  seed  or 
breeding  plat  large  enough  for  the  requirements. 
When  seed  plat  potatoes  are  in  full  foliage,  ten  days 
before  they  die  down,  go  over  them  and  remove 
every  diseased  hill,  that  such  stock  will  not  be  a 
menace  to  future  yields.  At  harvest  time  the  seed 
plat  product  should  be  carefully  handled  and  put 
into  cold  storage.  Assort  these  into  two  grades  — 
specials  and  selects  —  enough  of  the  former  (ideal 
shaped  typical  tubers)  to  maintain  the  annual  seed 
plat  and  of  the  latter  enough  to  plant  the  annual 
crop.  Treat  the  specials  with  formaldehyde,  one 
pint  diluted  with  thirty  gallons  of  water,  and  po- 
tatoes immersed  two  hours. 

"Potato  ground  is  rolled  ahead  of  potato  planter 
to  insure  uniform  planting  depth.  Especially  im- 
portant is  this  if  soil  varies.  At  digging  time,  if 
season  is  wet  and  potatoes  are  in  deep,  the  digging 


THE  POTATO  343 

is  a  sort  of  horse-killing  job  even  for  four  strong 
horses. 

"Potatoes  are  planted  4  inches  deep,  11  inches 
apart  in  the  row,  and  rows  3G  inches  apart,  15,840 
hills  per  acre.  One  pound  per  hill  would  yield  264 
bushels  per  acre;  two  pounds  per  hill,  528  bushels; 
twenty  bushels  of  large  potatoes  are  used  per  acre, 
cutting  to  about  two  eyes  per  seed  piece.  Plant- 
ing is  usually  completed  about  May  12th. 

"For  the  cultivation  of  the  crop  a  riding,  pivot- 
wheel,  double-row  cultivator  is  used  exclusively. 
Cultivator  is  started  same  day  or  week  the  plant- 
ing is  finished,  endeavoring  to  get  three  times  over 
field  before  potatoes  are  up.  Potato  row  ridges  are 
fallowed.  The  row  middles  should  be  thorough 
and  deeply  broken  up.  It  is  safe  to  cultivate  deep 
at  this  stage,  but  not  after  potatoes  are  four  inches 
high,  as  roots  extend  over  halfway  from  row  to 
row.  By  deep  cultivation  at  this  time  roots  are 
torn  off,  and  the  potato  root  system  is  interfered 
with,  with  a  corresponding  lower  yield. 

"Next,  the  walking  seven-foot  weeder  is  run 
twice  over  field,  first  crosswise  the  rows  and  the 
last  time  straight  with  row,  which  leaves  plants  in 
a  narrower  row,  and  aids  in  closer  cultivator  work. 
If  storms  follow  and  weeder  went  crosswise  last,  the 
potato  row  would  be  wider  from  being  pounded 
down  and  elbowing  up.  For  weeder  work,  dry, 
hot  weather  is  chosen,  if  there  is  a  choice,  and  not 
starting  same  until  after  nine  o'clock,  as  potatoes 
will  stand  more  abuse  when  warmed  up. 

"The  cultivator  is  now  adjusted  with  narrow 
teeth,  one  and  one  fourth  inch  on  the  two  central 
ones,  and  set  as  close  to  the  row  as  it  is  possible  to 
run  it;  in  fact,  so  close,  the  operator  says,  that 
every  time  he  sneezes  out  goes  a  hill  of  potatoes. 


344  THE  POTATO 

Go  twice  over  field  with  cultivator  so  adjusted. 
Then  cultivator  is  arranged  with  a  pair  of  seven- 
inch  side  steels  on  the  two  central  teeth,  and  a 
small  ridge  of  soil,  about  three  inches  high,  is 
thrown  on  to  the  potato  rows,  and  twice  over  field. 
Up  to  this  time  the  cultivations  number  seven. 
Balance  of  cultivation,  usually  twelve  to  fifteen  all 
told,  is  done  with  cultivator,  gradually  widening 
apart  the  side  steels  as  the  vines  develop.  Every 
cultivation  is  equal  to  a  light  dressing  of  nitrate  of 
soda  —  forty  pounds  per  acre.  Earth  mulch  is 
provided,  evaporation  prevented,  aeration  and 
ventilation  of  soil  is  established,  and  lastly  weeds 
are  destroyed.  Level  culture  is  the  plan,  but  these 
frequent  cultivations  ridge  up  the  field  consider- 
ably, which  ranges  around  four  inches  out  of  level. 
The  more  surface  the  more  evaporation.  Culti- 
vation is  discontinued  the  last  of  July.  Care  is 
taken  to  go  astride  alternate  rows  at  each  cultiva- 
tion. With  this  construction  of  cultivator  the 
gang  bars  are  each  side  of  wheels.  After  vines 
commence  to  lop,  four  teeth  are  placed  forward  on 
gang  bars.  These  teeth  raise  vines  up  and  prevent 
damage  from  wheels  and  teeth.  For  stray  weeds 
two  hand  weedings  are  given  during  the  middle  of 
July  and  August. 

"  Bordeaux  mixture  is  used  freely  and  vigorously. 
Stock  solutions  of  copper  and  lime  are  kept  in 
readiness;  1,000  to  1,500  gallons  Bordeaux  applied 
per  acre  annually,  125  to  150  pound  pressure. 
Arsenate  of  lead  is  added  to  Bordeaux  for  the  po- 
tato bugs  and  larvae.  Nozzle  angle  should  be 
changed  from  straight  to  right  and  left  and  go  re- 
verse directions  at  each  application.  Flank  an 
enemy  and  he  is  in  a  dangerous  condition.  Bor- 
deaux is  a  protection  insurance  only.     Only  a  film 


THE  POTATO  345 

of  it  is  required.  On  time  and  thoroughness  are 
virtues.  First  appHcation  should  be  made  about 
the  last  of  June,  when  potatoes  are  about  one 
foot  high.  Spraying  should  be  discontinued 
from  September  1st  to  15th,  depending  on  the 
season. 

"The  results  of  spraying  for  190G  to  1911  follow: 
This  is  the  net  profit,  not  gain:  190G,  $42.07;  1907, 
$32.42;  1908,  $48.80;  1909,  $20.08;  1910,  $24.00. 
The  total  cost  of  thorough  spraying  ranges  from 
$8  to  $15  per  acre. 

"Inside  measurements  of  potato  crates  are 
12  X  14  X  15}  inches.  Outside  12|  inches  high, 
14 J  inches  wide,  and  17  inches  long.  They  nest 
up  and  fit  endwise  a  three-foot  wagon  box.  They 
contain  2,562  cubic  inches,  and  hold  sixty  pounds 
potatoes  level  full.  Ends  are  |-inch  pine  or  white- 
wood  boards,  12  inches  wide,  cut  to  length;  sides 
and  bottoms  are  f -inch  basswood.  We  have  500 
crates. 

"For  harvesting  the  crop  the  Hoover  digger  is 
used,  digging  every  other  row,  beginning  on  lower 
side  of  field  and  digging  in  divisions  of  four  rows. 
Four  rows  of  potatoes  are  picked  into  two  rows  of 
crates.  The  truck  wagon  passes  to  farther  end  of 
field,  distributing  the  empty  crates.  The  wagon 
is  loaded  on  return  by  driving  between  the  two 
rows  of  full  crates.  One  or  two  men  on  each  side 
set  on  to  the  wagon  the  crates  of  potatoes  without 
stopping.  The  truck  wagon  platform  is  6  x  19 
feet  and  only  30  inches  above  the  ground.  It 
holds  sixty  crates,  one  crate  high.  Often  100  to 
110  bushels  are  drawn.  In  1906,  1,501  bushels 
were  dug  and  picked  up  in  one  day  and  over  1,000 
bushels  drawn  one  mile  and  loaded  on  to  cars. 
Selling  direct  from  field  to  car  is  highly  satisfac- 


346  THE  POTATO 

tory.  During  1901  $2,013  worth  of  potatoes 
were  sold  direct  from  field  to  car  with  only  the 
initial  handling.  Potato  crop  for  1907  totaled 
$2,807.89." 

The  cost  of  growing  potatoes  in  these  districts 
wiU  be  found  in  Chapter  XIII. 


J 


J 


CHAPTER  XXX 

SOUTH    ATLANTIC    AND    GULF    STATES 

THE  states  in  this  classification  grow  large 
acreages  of  sweet  potatoes.  This  subject 
is  covered  in  a  separate  chapter.  The 
Irish  potato  situation  is  also  discussed  in  the  chap- 
ter on  "Specialties  —  Early  Potatoes.'* 

The  mild  climatic  conditions  make  the  produc- 
tion of  a  crop  of  very  early  potatoes  —  and  a  later 
crop  —  possible,  and  furnish  opportunities  for  the 
marketing  of  an  "  out-of -season"  product  at  a  high 
price. 

There  is  no  reason  why  the  local  supply  of 
"white"  potatoes  for  the  South  should  not  be 
grown  locally.  The  fundamental  things  to  be 
considered  are  soil,  season,  and  seed. 

If  the  soil  in  which  it  is  intended  to  gi'ow  the 
crop  is  not  naturally  mellow,  easily  worked,  and 
sufficiently  stocked  with  fertility  to  make  a  crop 
possible,  steps  must  be  taken  to  bring  this  about. 
Heavy,  hard  lands  need  cover  crops  and  barn- 
yard manure  to  lighten  their  texture;  sandy  soils 
require  the  same  things  to  add  fertility. 

As  far  as  climate  is  concerned,  it  must  be  re- 
membered that  the  potato  is  a  "cool- weather" 
crop,  as  distinguished  from  corn,  cotton,  and  the 
"hot-weather"  crops.  It  must  be  planted  so  as 
to  make  its  greatest  growth  during  the  early  or 
late  part  of  the  crop  season. 

Growers  of  potatoes  in  warm  climates  generally 

347 


348  THE  POTATO 

find  it  profitable  to  use  Northern -grown  seed.  Seed 
from  districts  where  the  tops  are  killed  by  frost 
makes  the  surest  and  strongest  growth.  It  is 
only  in  such  places  —  like  Chile  and  the  western 
slope  in  Colorado  —  that  potatoes  endure  with- 
out cultivation  for  centuries.  This  is  a  reason  for 
getting  seed  from  these  north  latitude  or  high 
altitude  districts,  but  is  no  reason  why  potatoes 
should  not  be  grown  in  the  South. 

Potatoes  to  be  held  for  use  should  be  stored  in 
a  dark  place,  as  cool  and  dry  as  possible. 

Following  is  a  description  of  conditions  in  one 
district  in  Florida  that  has  been  made  quite  famous : 

The  growling  of  Irish  potatoes  in  the  Hastings 
district  in  Florida  was  begun  about  ten  years  ago. 
It  has  grown  steadily  until  in  1911  the  production 
was  300,000  barrels,  or  800,000  bushels. 

The  conditions  that  obtain  at  Hastings  are  dif- 
ferent from  anywhere  else  in  the  world. 

The  soil  is  a  very  light  sand  and  the  subsoil  a 
stiff,  impervious  clay  at  varying  depths.  This 
sand  is  claimed  to  be  very  low  in  available  fertility, 
and  annual  fertilization  is  necessary.  This  fer- 
tilizing seems  to  be  quite  as  essential  on  land  just 
cleared  of  timber  as  on  that  cropped  continuously 
for  ten  years. 

A  commercial  fertilizer  costing  $30  a  ton  and 
containing  4  per  cent,  nitrate,  7  per  cent,  acid 
phosphate,  and  7j  per  cent,  potash  is  in  common 
use.  It  is  applied  at  the  rate  of  one  ton  per  acre, 
being  sown  in  rows  previous  to  planting  the 
potatoes.  Some  growers  claim  that  barnyard 
manure  cannot  be  used  for  fertilizer  because  it 
"poisons"  the  land  and  causes  potato  scab. 

Potatoes  are  planted  on  what  are  called  "beds," 
in  ridges  thrown  up  with  implements  similar  to  a 


THE  POTATO  349 

"middle  breaker"  plow  or  lister,  or  by  a  double 
disk  with  two  small  sixtcen-inch  disks  in  front, 
followed  by  two  twenty -four-inch  disks  that  throw 
the  furrows  together. 

The  ridges  are  forty -two  inches  apart  and  about 
ten  inches  high;  the  fertilizer  is  then  put  in  the 
furrow  and  the  potatoes  planted  in  this  ridge. 
They  are  planted  two  to  six  inches  deep.  When 
planted,  the  fields  have  the  appearance  of  a  field 
ridged  after  the  final  cultivation  in  other  dis- 
tricts. Very  little  cultivation  is  done  in  this  dis- 
trict. Only  disk  cultivators  are  used.  These 
cover  up  the  potatoes  deeper  than  they  are  planted 
and  destroy  such  weeds  as  are  between  the  rows. 

One  grower  objected  to  the  use  of  barnyard 
manure  because  it  was  the  cause  of  many  weeds. 

The  land  in  the  Hastings  district  is  very  flat. 
The  heavy  rainfall  at  some  seasons  of  the  year 
makes  it  imperative  that  all  lands  for  potato  grow- 
ing be  drained.  During  the  dry  season  irrigation 
is  necessary  to  insure  profitable  crops. 

This  part  of  Florida  is  fifteen  to  twenty  miles 
from  the  ocean.  The  St.  John's  River  bounds  it 
on  the  west.  Between  the  ocean  and  the  river  is 
an  artesian  water  belt.  The  depth  of  the  wells 
that  furnish  this  artesian  flow  is  about  200  feet. 

At  the  T.  E.  Bugbee  farm,  near  Hastings,  where 
land  is  seventeen  feet  above  sea  level,  the  artesian 
flow  is  twenty  feet  above  the  surface.  At  the 
other  end  of  the  farm,  two  and  three  fourth  miles 
away,  the  land  is  six  feet  higher  and  the  artesian 
flow  is  fourteen  feet  above  the  level  of  the  land. 

A  four-inch  well  gives  a  sufficient  flow  for  ir- 
rigating forty  acres  of  potatoes.  At  a  cost  of 
$200  for  the  installation,  this  system  affords  per- 
petual irrigation.     It  is  probably  the  cheapest  ir- 


350  THE  POTATO 

rigation  known  in  the  world.  All  that  is  neces- 
sary to  work  it  is  to  open  or  close  the  valve.  The 
farm  homes  and  barns  are  supplied  with  pressure 
water. 

This  system  of  irrigating  is  similar  to  that  in 
the  San  Luis  Valley  in  Colorado.  In  Florida, 
however,  the  sub-laterals  or  deep  trenches  are  only 
forty  feet  apart,  while  in  Colorado  they  are  about 
200  feet  apart. 

The  impervious  clay  subsoil  and  the  flatness  of 
the  land  permit  this  system  of  filling  the  land  with 
moisture  from  the  clay  floor  up  to  the  surface  or  as 
near  the  surface  as  the  farmer  desires.  The  top 
soil  is  so  loose  and  porous  that  the  soil  spaces  fill 
with  water  readily.  These  narrow  beds  in  the 
Hastings  district  allow  the  planting  of  about  ten 
rows  of  potatoes,  forty-two  inches  apart  to  the 
bed.  Then,  there  is  about  six  feet  of  land  re- 
quired for  the  trench  in  which  the  irrigating  water 
is  held  until  it  "subs"  or  seeps  to  the  centre  of  the 
forty-foot  bed.     This  is  a  waste  of  land. 

Northern-grown  seed  potatoes  are  used  ex- 
clusively. They  come  from  New  York  or  Maine 
growers.  One  successful  Florida  grower  says  that 
partially  matured  seed  from  Maine  gives  the 
strongest  plants  and  growth  with  less  rot  in  un- 
favorable cold  and  wet  seasons. 

The  Spaulding  No.  "4"  Rose,  a  variety  that  is 
regarded  as  a  late  sort  in  the  North,  is  the  earliest 
large  yielding  sort  they  have  ever  grown  exten- 
sively at  Hastings.  Fully  95  per  cent,  of  the  plant- 
ing is  of  this  variety.  Last  year,  however,  an 
acre  of  "Polaris"  gave  the  best  yield  ever  grown. 

From  ten  to  twelve  bushels  of  seed  are  used  per 
acre.  From  65  to  90  per  cent,  of  a  perfect  stand 
is    generally    secured,    although     occasionally    a 


THE  POTATO  351 

whole  planting  is  lost  from  excessive  cold  and 
heavj^  rains,  unless  the  best  possible  drainage  or 
ditch  facilities  are  made. 

Planting  on  flat  ground  without  ridging  would 
almost  always  be  a  failure  because  of  the  heavy- 
rains.  This  is  because  the  land  is  so  flat  and  the 
subsoil  so  impervious.  The  water  could  not  be 
carried  off  until  the  crop  was  scalded  by  the  hot 
sun,  or  the  seed  rotted. 

From  one  to  four,  generally  two  to  three,  irri- 
gations are  usually  necessary  to  mature  a  crop. 

The  yields  are  about  forty  barrels,  or  112  bushels, 
per  acre.  The  range  is  from  75  to  250  bushels  per 
acre. 

The  busy  harvesting  season  is  from  April  10th 
to  June.  Harvest  hands  come  long  distances  to 
work  in  the  potato  fields.  The  labor  is  all  colored; 
$1  to  $1.50  per  day  is  the  wage  paid.  Forty  to  fifty 
cars  a  day  are  sent  out  during  the  season.  Forty 
to  fifty  buyers  from  Northern  cities  are  on  the 
ground  during  this  short  harvesting  season.  The 
potato-growing  area  can  be  about  quadrupled. 
Considerable  capital  is  required  to  clear  the  land  of 
pine  trees  and  stumps  —  about  $30  to  $75  per  acre. 

Ten  days  before  potatoes  are  harvested  corn 
is  planted  in  the  furrows,  and  when  digging  time 
comes  the  corn  is  six  to  ten  inches  high.  The  po- 
tatoes are  "lifted"  or  dug  by  hand.  The  com  is 
cultivated  once  or  twice  and  one  and  one  half 
bushels  of  cow  peas  are  sown  per  acre.  The  corn 
is  harvested  in  November  and  the  cow  peas  cut 
for  hay.  The  cow  peas  are  cut  about  eight  inches 
above  the  ground.  The  stubble  is  then  plowed 
under.  This  makes  it  possible  to  grow  a  crop  of 
potatoes  every  year.  The  cow-pea  stubble  and 
the  root  svstem  furnish  humus  to  the  soil. 


352  THE  POTATO 

Land  values  have  advanced  in  ten  years  from 
$25  an  acre  to  $200  an  acre  for  best  improved 
farms. 

Potatoes  are  graded  and  shipped  in  barrels. 
The  No.  1  grade  is  two  and  one  fourth  inches  or 
more  in  diameter.  No.  2,  one  and  one  half  to 
two  and  one  fourth  inches  in  diameter.  The  No. 
1  grade  usually  sells  for  one  dollar  per  barrel  above 
the  No.  2  grade.  When  the  potato  crop  is  short 
and  prices  are  high,  the  culls  are  also  shipped. 
Average  prices  received  by  the  grower  for  five 
years  has  been  $3.25  per  barrel  net.  Barrels  hold 
eleven  pecks  (two  bushels  and  three  pecks). 

When  the  potatoes  are  dug,  three  rows  are 
thrown  into  one  and  one  set  of  pickers  pick  out  the 
No.  1  grade,  another  set  of  pickers  follow  and  sort 
out  the  No.  2  grade.  This  seems  a  very  crude  and 
expensive  way. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  harvest,  potatoes  are 
only  partially  matured.  They  are  soft  and  full 
of  sap  and  must  be  taken  out  of  the  hot  sun  within 
thirty  minutes  from  the  time  they  are  exposed. 
Otherwise,  they  scald  and  heat.  No  sorter  or 
grader  has  been  devised  that  will  grade  without 
bruising  the  skin. 

This  season  (1912)  the  best  growers  are  spray- 
ing extensively  for  blight. 

The  cost  of  growing  potatoes  m  Florida  is  given 
in  Chapter  XIII. 

In  a  report  of  Ed.  R.  Kone,  Commissioner  of 
Agriculture  of  the  State  of  Texas,  the  following 
in  regard  to  the  Texas  potato  situation  is  sub- 
mitted: 

**  Potatoes  are  a  profitable  crop  in  Texas.  Our 
soils  and  climatic  conditions  appear  well  suited  to 


THE  POTATO  S53 

them.  The  principal  supply  of  this  crop,  which 
goes  to  the  markets  of  the  country,  is  grown  in 
eastern  Texas,  though  it  grows  well  in  much  of  our 
soil  from  the  Gulf  coast  to  the  northwestern  boun- 
dary of  our  state. 

"The  sweet  potato  is  especially  adapted  to 
Texas  soils  and  climate.  Usually  the  yield  is  much 
greater  per  acre  than  that  of  the  Irish  potato. 
In  'Farmers'  Bulletin  No.  324'  of  the  United  States 
Department  of  Agriculture,  on  sweet  potatoes,  this 
crop  is  placed  among  the  five  greatest  commercial 
truck  crops,  and  ranked  as  third  on  the  list.  No 
truck  crop  in  Texas  has  increased  in  volume  so 
much  as  this.  It  is  one  of  the  great  commercial 
crops  and  can  be  grown  over  as  wide  a  range  of 
territory  as  any  of  the  other  vegetable  crops. 

*'As  long  ago  as  1899  Texas  ranked  tenth  in  the 
value  of  all  vegetable  crops  grown  that  j^ear.  This 
is  according  to  the  twelfth  census  report  of  the 
United  States,  1900.  The  average  value  per  acre 
for  Irish  potatoes  for  1899  was  $33.25,  and 
for  sweet  potatoes  $38.77.  The  average  yield  per 
acre  for  Irish  potatoes  was  61.5  bushels  and  for 
sweet  potatoes  75.7.  The  average  value  per  bushel 
was  54  cents  for  Irish  potatoes  and  51  cents  for 
sweet  potatoes.  Hence  it  will  be  noted  that  the 
sweet  potato  gives  the  greatest  average  value  per 
acre,  and  explains  why  there  has  been  such  a 
marked  increase  in  the  development  of  the  sweet- 
potato  industry  in  our  state  during  the  last  ten- 
year  period." 


CHAPTER  XXXI 

THE    MIDDLE    WEST 

A  LARGE   tonnage  of  potatoes   is   grown   in 
the  states  comprised  in  the  territory  known 
as  the  Middle  West. 
There  is  so  much  similarity  in  conditions  and 
methods  that  for  the  purpose  of  this  work  a  dis- 
cussion of  two  states  (Wisconsin  and  Kansas)  is 
taken  as  being  typical  of  the  territory. 

WISCONSIN 

The  following  very  comprehensive  information 
about  the  potato  industry  of  Wisconsin  is  furnished 
by  Prof.  J.  G.  Milward  of  the  Horticultural  De- 
partment of  the  University  of  Wisconsin.  He  is 
a  graduate  of  that  institution  and  a  very  capable, 
earnest  worker  for  the  upbuilding  of  the  agri- 
culture of  the  state.  It  is  the  work  of  such  men 
as  Professor  Milward  that  has  been  one  of  the 
principal  factors  in  agricultural  progress  during 
the  past  decade.     He  says: 

"The  main  or  late  crop  of  potatoes  in  this  state 
is  usually  planted  between  the  dates  June  1st  and 
June  15th.  The  early  potatoes  for  early  market 
are  usually  planted  May  1st  to  May  15th.  A 
number  of  growers  in  this  state  who  raise  early  po- 
tatoes for  seed  for  southern  trucking  centres 
practise  planting  as  late  as  July  1st  and  gain  what 

S54 


THE  POTATO  355 

is  sometimes  an  advantage  of  having  the  vines 
mature  during  the  cool  fall  months.  The  season 
for  harvesting  the  main  crop  ranges  from  October 
1st  to  October  15th.  In  unusual  seasons  of 
drought  or  blight  the  late  crop  may  be  dead  as 
early  as  September  15th5  in  which  case  the  har- 
vesting season  is  earlier. 

"Potatoes  are  grown  in  Wisconsin  on  both  the 
clay  loam  and  sandy  loam  tj^ies  of  soil.  The  large 
potato  belt  of  the  state,  comprising  Waupaca, 
Waushara,  and  Portage  counties,  runs  quite  largely 
to  the  sandy  loam  type  of  soil.  There  is  also  con- 
siderable sandy  soil  in  the  newer  potato  sections 
in  the  northwestern  part  of  the  state.  In  this 
section,  where  clover  grows  luxuriantly,  the  set- 
tlers seem  able  to  secure  very  good  yields  of  po- 
tatoes from  the  lighter  grades  of  sandy  soil.  The 
soil  in  every  potato  section  of  the  state  varies  con- 
siderably both  in  mechanical  conditions  and  in 
fertility,  and  a  wide  range  of  yields  is  obtained  in 
every  section  of  this  state,  due  quite  largely  to 
these  varymg  factors. 

"The  central  potato  district  of  this  state  com- 
prises Waupaca,  Waushara,  and  Portage  counties. 
The  counties  of  secondary  importance  in  this  state 
are  Adams,  Juneau,  Columbia,  and  Sauk.  The 
three  counties  mentioned  above  rank  among  the 
thirteen  leading  producing  counties  in  the  United 
States.  The  newer  sections  in  this  state,  especially 
under  development  at  the  present  time,  are  found 
in  the  northwestern  part  of  the  state  and  com- 
prise sections  in  Washburn,  Burnett,  Barron, 
Chippewa,  Rusk,  and  Eau  Claire  counties.  This 
section  is  especially  adapted  to  the  growing  of 
early  varieties,  and  it  is  our  opinion  that  north- 
western Wisconsin  will  become  one  of  the  leading 


356  THE  POTATO 

potato  sections  of  the  United  States.  Consider- 
able attention  has  been  given  in  this  section  to  the 
development  of  the  seed-growing  phase  of  the 
industry. 

"Most  of  the  potato  stock  grown  in  this  state  is 
raised  from  home-grown  seed.  There  has  been 
considerable  deterioration  in  potato  seed  in  the 
last  few  years,  and  there  is  a  great  need  in  this 
state  for  more  uniformity  in  varieties  grown. 
Very  often  the  standard  sorts  in  demand  on  the 
markets  have  been  supplanted  by  coarse,  imi- 
tative sorts.  The  Wisconsin  Experiment  Station 
through  its  extension  service  is  endeavoring  to 
remedy  this  matter  by  encouraging  community 
centres  w^here  one  variety  can  be  gro\\ii.  The 
important  commercial  varieties  in  this  state  are, 
for  late.  Rural  New  Yorker,  Sir  Walter  Raleigh, 
Carman  No.  3,  Burbank,  and  Peerless;  early  va- 
rieties, Early  Ohio,  Early  Rose,  and  Triumph.  A 
number  of  growers  are  becoming  interested  in  the 
Irish  Cobbler,  but  this  variety  has  not  been  grown 
on  a  wide  enough  scale  to  judge  its  adaptability. 
The  Rural  New  Yorker,  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  and 
Carman  No.  3  are  mixed  in  car  shipments.  Most 
buyers  grade  potatoes  according  to  type  rather 
than  variety,  and  round  white  varieties  are  usually 
graded  together  in  car  shipments.  In  many  lo- 
calities the  standard  Burbank  has  disappeared, 
and  especially  on  the  poorer  soils  a  coarse  variety, 
the  Late  Pride,  has  taken  its  place.  This  substi- 
tution has  caused  considerable  difficulty  both  at 
the  loading  stations  and  on  the  markets. 

"On  the  heavy  types  of  potato  land  in  this 
state  fall  plowing  is  often  practised.  On  the 
sandy  loam  soil  potatoes  are  usually  planted  on 
spring  plowed  land.     Especially  in  places  where  a 


THE  POTATO  :357 

good  catch  of  clover  has  been  secured  sprmg  plow- 
ing is  satisfactory.  The  clover  is  allowed  to  grow 
until  about  May  20th  to  25tli.  The  land  is  then 
plowed,  well  disked  and  harrowed  and  firmed  with 
a  planker,  and  the  potatoes  planted  fron  June  1st 
to  15th.  The  most  successful  growers  make  an 
application  of  manure  to  clover  sod  in  this  state. 

*' Potatoes  are  planted  usually  in  drill  rows,  the 
rows  about  three  feet  apart  and  the  seed  pieces 
fifteen  to  seventeen  inches  apart  in  the  row.  On 
the  heavier  land  a  number  of  successful  growers 
practise  checking  the  rows  three  feet  apart  each 
way.  Very  little  difference  in  yield  has  been 
noticed  in  a  comparison  of  the  two  systems  in  this 
state.  In  the  sandy  loam  soil  the  potatoes  are 
planted  about  four  to  six  inches  deep.  In  the  clay 
loam  soil  the  depth  is  a  trifle  more  shallow. 

"The  fields  are  harrowed  well  at  the  time  of 
planting  and  also  about  the  time  the  potatoes 
come  up.  Wlien  the  rows  are  visible  the  culti- 
vator is  started  and  the  potatoes  are  given  from 
three  to  five  cultivations  during  the  season.  Level 
cultivation  is  practised.  Very  little  hilhng  is 
done  except  to  ridge  the  rows  slightly  at  the  last 
cultivation. 

*'A  good  percentage  of  the  potato  crop  of  this 
state  is  sold  direct  to  warehouses  from  the  field. 
If  the  price  is  as  high  as  40  cents  per  bushel,  a 
large  percentage  of  the  crop  will  go  into  ware- 
houses and  be  shipped  to  the  markets  during  the 
fall  months.  The  potatoes  of  this  state  are  han- 
dled quite  largely  through  the  hands  of  buyers  who 
ship  to  commission  men  in  Milwaukee,  Chicago, 
St.  Louis,  Minneapolis,  and  St.  Paul.  All  of  the 
large  commission  houses  in  Chicago  have  a  num- 
ber of  warehouses  in  this  state.     A  number  of  the 


358  THE  POTATO 

large  growers  ship  direct  to  commission  houses  in 
Milwaukee  or  Chicago.  In  some  potato  sections 
the  farmers  have  organized  and  have  warehouses 
of  their  own.  They  hire  a  man  at  a  salary  to 
handle  the  stock  and  ship  direct  to  commission 
houses  in  the  large  cities. 

"A  good  many  progressive  growers  in  this  state 
have  built  small  storage  cellars  costing  approxi- 
mately from  $300  to  $500.  In  a  good  many  cases 
excavations  have  been  made  in  side  hills  and  ar- 
rangements have  been  made  to  load  the  potatoes 
into  these  cellars  directly  through  openings  in  the 
top,  or  in  some  cases  provision  has  been  made  to 
back  the  wagons  right  into  the  storage  cellars. 

"It  costs  from  $20  to  $25  per  acre  to  grow  pota- 
toes in  this  state.  Profits  necessarily  vary  con- 
siderably, due  to  the  fact  that  conditions  vary  so 
throughout  the  state.  A  net  profit  of  $30  per 
acre  would  be  considered  satisfactory  in  sections 
where  an  average  yield  of  150  bushels  per  acre  was 
secured.  In  sections  where  the  yield  runs  as  high 
as  300  bushels  the  profit  should  be  increased  pro- 
portionately. There  are  a  good  many  growers 
on  the  light,  sandy  soils  who  do  not  average  a  net 
profit  of  $25  per  acre. 

"Artificial  fertilizers  are  not  used  to  any  extent 
by  the  potato  growers  of  this  state.  The  best 
potato  growers  use  the  following  crops  in  three 
or  four  year  rotations:  Clover  and  some  grain 
crop  corn,  and  potatoes.  Liberal  applications  of 
manure  are  made  on  farms  where  considerable 
livestock  is  kept. 

"A  system  of  rotation  in  this  state  has  been 
found  necessary  to  maintain  the  fertihty  on  po- 
tato farms.  Where  rotation  has  been  neglected, 
along  with  the  failure  to  handle  livestock,  the 


THE  POTATO  359 

yields  of  potatoes  have  deteriorated  in  the  past 
ten  years  both  in  quahty  and  quantity.  There 
are  sections  in  this  state  which  originally  yielded 
from  200  to  300  bushels  per  acre  which  now  yield 
below  100  bushels  per  acre. 

"The  largest  acreage  of  potatoes  reported  in 
this  state  on  a  single  farm  is  400  acres.  In  the 
important  potato  sections  of  the  state  the  average 
acreage  would  probably  run  to  about  ten  acres. 

"This  station  (Wisconsin  Agricultural  Experi- 
ment Station)  is  pushing  as  hard  as  possible  the 
extension  work  along  the  line  of  potato  improve- 
ment. There  is  a  great  need  in  this  state  for  better 
seed,  both  in  regard  to  uniformity  and  conformity 
to  type." 

KANSAS 

Secretary,  F.  D.  Coburn,  of  the  Kansas  State 
Board  of  Agriculture,  most  admirably  sums  up  the 
potato  situation  in  that  state  in  "Report  91,"  as 
follows : 

"The  potato  is  probably  more  generally  grown 
and  utilized  than  any  other  vegetable,  and  every 
county  in  the  state,  with  the  possible  exception  of 
six  or  eight  in  the  southern  and  western  portions, 
devotes  greater  or  less  acreage  to  its  production. 
As  many  conditions  within  the  state's  82,144 
square  miles  of  area  are  widely  variant,  yields  hke- 
wise  differ;  thlis  the  potato  grows  prosperouslj'- 
luxuriant  in  the  rich,  sandy  loams  of  the  formerly 
timbered  river  *  bottoms'  and  the  upland  prairie 
limestone  soils,  while  flourishing  in  a  more  modest 
degree  where  altitude,  longitude,  soil  and  climate 
present  conditions  quite  dissimilar  yet  no  less 
suited  to  various  other  crops.     However,  regard- 


360  THE  POTATO 

less  of  adaptability,  potatoes,  as  in  the  past,  will 
doubtless  continue  to  be  grown  on  practically  every 
farm  and  in  every  considerable  garden;  conse- 
quently yields  per  acre  for  the  state  may  seem  to 
average  low,  comparatively;  but  in  the  real  po- 
tato districts  in  the  more  favoring  seasons  returns 
of  over  400  bushels  per  acre  are  realized,  and  an 
output  of  300  bushels  or  more  is  not  at  all  un- 
common. 

*'The  portion  of  the  state  proved  most  admi- 
rably adapted  to  potatoes  as  a  commercial  crop  is 
known  as  the  Kaw  Valley  potato  district,  in  east- 
ern Kansas,  where  large  quantities  are  growTi  and 
shipped  each  year.  In  the  main,  this  consists  of 
sandy  loam  'bottom'  land,  tw^o  to  six  miles  wide, 
adjacent  to  the  Kaw  or  Kansas  river,  in  the  coun- 
ties of  Wyandotte,  Johnson,  Leavenworth,  Doug- 
las, Jefferson,  Sha^vnee,  Pottawatomie,  and  Wab- 
aunsee, and  extending  westward  100  miles  from 
its  joining  with  the  Missouri  at  Kansas  City.  Of 
the  total  Kansas  area  planted  to  Irish  potatoes  in 
recent  years  more  than  one  fourth  is  in  these  eight 
counties,  Wyandotte  ordinarily  leading  in  acres 
and  production.  Nearly  a  third  of  the  state's 
crop,  or  practically  all  potatoes  raised  in  Kansas 
for  export,  is  frequently  the  product  of  the  coun- 
ties named. 

*' Early  varieties  for  summer  marketing  are 
planted  mostly,  and  of  these  the  Early  Ohio  is  by 
all  odds  the  favorite,  followed  to  a  small  extent  by 
the  Early  Rose  and  Triumph,  as  named.  The 
small  proportion  of  late  sorts  planted  are  the  Bur- 
bank  and  Peachblow.  Even  for  winter  use  the 
early  varieties  are  grown,  and  left  undisturbed  in 
the  ground  until  fall.  While  some  home-grown 
stock  is  planted,  Northern-grown  seed  is  found 


THE  POTATO  361 

best,  and  each  year  Uiousaiids  of  bushels  are 
shipped  in  by  planters  and  dealers,  who  buy  from 
Minnesota  and  eastern  North  Dakota,  in  the  Red 
River  Valley. 

"Kaw  Valley  potatoes  find  their  market  in  all 
parts  of  the  country;  early  in  the  season  Chicago 
and  northern  points  claim  many,  and  some  go  in 
the  direction  of  New  York  and  Pittsburg,  but  prob- 
ably the  bulk  are  sent  south  and  southwctst,  especi- 
ally to  Texas,  and  preferably  sold  at  digging-time. 

"The  consensus  of  opinion  of  Kaw  Valley 
growers  reporting  suggests  that  they  consider  in 
the  neighborhood  of  37  cents  a  bushel  a  fair 
price  for  potatoes  on  board  the  cars,  and  the 
range  in  the  past  ten  years  has  been  from  about 
14  cents  to  $1.15  per  bushel. 

"Two  striking  features  of  Kansas  potato  grow- 
ing as  compared  with  that  in  other  states  surpass- 
ing her  in  aggregate  yields  are  absence  of  need  for 
expensive  fertilizers  and  freedom  from  insects  and 
fungous  diseases.  Of  the  Kansans  reporting,  none 
mention  using  commercial  fertilizers,  although  the 
majority  apply  more  or  less  manure,  or  sow  some 
crop  such  as  cow  peas  or  turnips  for  plowing  under 
when  green,  thereby  enriching  the  land  and  in- 
creasing its  subsequent  yields. 

"A  most  interesting  and  suggestive  fact  is  the 
possibility  of  profitably  irrigating,  in  the  more 
western  counties,  small  areas  for  potatoes,  and 
other  vegetables  as  well,  where  underground  waters 
are  made  available  by  wind  or  other  power. 
Several  correspondents  have  realized  gratifying 
success  by  such  means.  By  it  the  home  demand 
in  such  territory  may  not  only  be  supplied  with 
certainty  each  year,  but  the  markets  of  nearby 
cities  and  towns  would  offer  for  any  surplus  at- 


362  THE  POTATO 

tractive  inducements  in  prices,  usually  quite  in 
excess  of  those  realized  by  growers  elsewhere. 

"The  foregoing  pertains  to  Irish  potatoes  ex- 
clusively, but  sweet  potatoes  are  likewise  grown 
more  or  less  in  about  four  fifths  of  the  counties, 
most  extensively  and  successfully,  however,  in 
the  valleys  of  the  Kansas  and  Arkansas  rivers. 
The  six  counties  of  Pottawatomie,  Riley,  Wabaun- 
see, Shawnee,  Wyandotte,  and  Sedgwick  yield 
annually  about  one  half  or  more  of  the  state's  out- 
put, which  in  the  past  twenty  years  has  varied 
from  779,783  bushels  m  1889  to  212,468  bushels  in 
1897." 

The  cost  of  growing  potatoes  in  these  districts 
is  found  in  Chapter  XIII. 


CHAPTER  XXXII 

COLORADO 

THERE  are  a  number  of  districts  in  Colorado 
that  produce  potatoes  of  very  high  quahty. 
Among  these  are:  Greeley  and  north- 
eastern Colorado,  San  Luis  Valley,  the  Grand  River 
country,  in  which  Carbondale  is  located;  the  ter- 
ritory along  the  North  Fork  of  the  Gunnison  River, 
the  La  Platte  and  Montezuma  country,  and  the 
Routt  County  territory. 

Colorado  potato  growers  have  made  a  name  for 
their  product,  which  is  now  generally  know^n  as 
"Greelevs"  for  the  section  north  of  Denver  and 
east  of  the  mountains,  and  "Western  Slope"  for 
all  the  districts  west  of  the  mountains. 

GREELEY 

Greeley,  Col.,  and  vicinity,  was  settled  by  a 
colony  of  professional  and  business  people  who 
were  attracted  to  the  West  and  to  the  soil  by  the 
forceful  writings  of  Horace  Greeley.  The  early 
history  of  the  colony  chronicles  considerable  of 
that  element  which  the  Western  cow-puncher  calls 
"grief.'*  They  had  a  new  business  to  learn  under 
hard,  pioneer  conditions.  Those  who  stayed, 
however,  prospered.  This  has  been  true  of  all 
who  have  brought  to  the  business  of  farming 
trained  minds  and  broad  experience. 

Many  of  the  advanced  cultural  methods  used 

363 


364  THE  POTATO 

to-day  by  the  best  potato  growers  originated  at 
Greeley. 

The  story  of  the  Greeley  district  is  to  be  told  by 
Senator  H.  C.  Watson,  one  of  Greeley's  most  in- 
fluential men  and  one  of  the  first  in  the  business; 
by  Lord  Ogilvy,  agricultural  editor  of  the  Denver, 
(Col.)  Post,  one  of  the  best  informed  men  in 
agriculture  in  the  world  and  an  old-timer  at 
Greeley;  and  I.  Rothschild,  the  leading  dealer  in 
the  Greeley  market.     Senator  Watson  says: 

"The  colonists  commenced  to  arrive  here  early 
in  May,  1870.  I  came  on  the  first  day  of  May  of 
that  year,  and  am  now  the  oldest  inhabitant  in 
point  of  continuous  residence.  The  necessity  of 
raising  something  to  feed  the  people  was  very  ap- 
parent, so  I  hired  a  man  who  had  a  yoke  of  oxen, 
to  plow  up  some  lots  on  the  higher  ground  but 
under  the  ditch  we  proposed  to  dig,  and  bought 
some  Early  Rose  potatoes  of  a  merchant  in  Evans, 
Col.,  the  town  which  was,  at  that  time,  the  ter- 
minus of  the  Denver-Pacific  Railroad  (now  the 
Union  Pacific  Railroad),  about  four  miles  from 
Greeley.  I  paid  3 J  cents  per  pound;  had  them 
planted,  but  unfortunately  for  the  success  of  the 
experiment,  I  joined  a  party  of  men  who  proposed 
and  did  go  to  the  mountains  for  the  purpose  of 
floating  logs  down  the  river  to  supply  the  very 
great  need  of  lumber  to  house  the  people.  The 
man  I  left  in  charge  of  the  crop  did  not  do  much, 
and  as  a  result  I  did  not  get  much  of  a  crop,  al- 
though I  did  demonstrate  the  fact  that  we  could 
raise  potatoes  on  the  uplands  of  Colorado,  and 
received  enough  money  from  my  venture  to  pay 
the  actual  cost  of  raising.  I  believe  these  were 
(with  the  exception  of  some  that  were  raised  on  the 


THE  POTATO  365 

Ames  place  near  Fort  Collins  the  same  year)  the 
first  potatoes  raised  on  the  uplands  of  Colorado. 

"In  the  years  following  1870  there  were  in- 
creasing acres  planted  around  here,  principally 
Early  Rose.  A  little  later,  Morten  Whites  (these 
did  not  make  a  good  potato;  they  seemed  to  be 
lacking  in  starch  and  w^ould  not  cook  soft),  a  few 
Peachblow^s,  and  some  Snow  Flakes  were  planted. 
The  latter  were  the  very  best  eating  potatoes,  as, 
in  fact,  they  are  yet,  but  they  did  not  yield  heavily 
enough  to  be  profitable. 

"In  the  course  of  five  years  or  -so  we  had  suf- 
ficient potatoes  to  sell  to  make  it  necessary  to  do 
something  to  market  them.  I  was  then  employed 
as  clerk  in  a  large  store  here.  We  built  a  ware- 
house on  the  railroad  track,  which  stands  there 
yet,  and  went  at  the  business  systematically.  I 
had  charge  of  that  department  and  had  to  make 
frequent  trips  to  Denver  to  sell  our  stuff.  On  one 
of  those  trips  I  wrote  about  a  column  article  de- 
scribing how  we  handled  potatoes  in  Greeley  — • 
took  them  in  loose,  sorted,  and  sacked  them  our- 
selves. I  published  this  in  the  News  of  Denver. 
The  result  was  that  Greeley  *  spuds  '  got  a  reputa- 
tion that  was  of  value. 

"In  the  year  1881 1  went  into  business  for  my- 
self. A  part  of  this  business  was  the  handling  of 
potatoes,  which  by  this  time  had  become  an  in- 
dustry of  larger  dimensions  and  kept  increasing 
every  year.  In  the  season  of  188G  a  number  of 
business  men  and  bankers  concluded  that  the  po- 
tato business  had  become  so  large  that  it  was  nec- 
essary to  organize  the  selling  end,  so  that  we  could 
extend  our  markets.  To  that  end,  the  Greeley 
Mercantile  Company  was  organized  with  a  capital 
of  $40,000.     Mr.  O.  P.  Gale  was  president  and  I 


366  THE  POTATO 

was  vice-president.  We  paid  cash  and  handled 
our  product  on  its  merits,  as  every  business  should 
do.  About  this  time,  or  in  fact  several  years  be- 
fore, we  found  that  the  Early  Rose  were  not  grow- 
ing in  paying  quantities,  and  some  farmer  shipped 
some  seed  of  the  Rose  Seedling  variety  from  New 
York;  also  some  Mammoth  Pearls,  Carmans,  Mam- 
moth Prolifics,  and  Rurals.  All  of  these  varieties 
were  more  or  less  successful,  especially  the  Pearls, 
which  are  yet  the  principal  crop  raised  here.  In 
the  summer  of  1887  our  president  died  and  I  was 
compelled  to  take  charge  of  the  business.  We 
sent  a  man  to  Texas  and  kept  him  there  a  whole 
season  at  considerable  expense,  being  careful  to 
ship  only  good  stock.  We  did  not  make  much,  but 
we  created  a  market  for  the  future.  That  year 
there  were  about  1,500  cars  of  potatoes  raised  in 
the  territory  north  of  Denver.  We  found  that 
we  had  about  reached  our  limit,  as  the  water  from 
the  streams  would  not  hold  out  for  late  irrigation; 
that  is,  in  August.  This  made  it  necessary  to 
build  reservoirs  to  store  flood  waters  and  the  win- 
ter floods  of  the  streams. 

"We  were  not  raising  much  over  100  bushels  to 
the  acre,  as  the  soil  lacked  humus  and  nitrogen. 
A  farmer  from  Iowa  by  the  name  of  Bliss  concluded 
that  he  would  try  turning  under  alfalfa  as  they 
did  clover  in  the  East.  Now  our  farmers  were  of 
the  opinion  that  you  could  not  get  it  to  rot,  as  it 
came  right  up  again,  but  he  managed,  by  putting 
chains  on  the  plows,  to  turn  the  plant  under.  The 
result  was  astonishing,  as  it  just  about  doubled  the 
crop,  not  only  of  potatoes,  but  of  everything  else. 

"A  number  of  years  ago  I  conceived  the  idea 
that  we  might  increase  our  crop  by  shipping  in 
some  seed  from  a  non-irrigated  country;  so  we  got 


THE  POTATO  367 

a  car  of  Mammoth  Pearl  seed  from  northern  Wis- 
consin. We  had  some  trouble  in  getting  this  car 
sold,  as  we  had  to  get  $1.25  per  cwt.  for  it,  but  we 
scattered  the  potatoes  over  the  country  —  five 
and  ten  sacks  in  a  place.  The  result  was  a  very 
large  increase  in  the  crop  and  very  much  better 
stock.  Now  our  farmers  do  not  object  to  paying 
$2.00  per  cwt.  for  seed.' 


>> 


Lord  Ogilvy  says: 

"Whatever  claims  may  be  pressed  by  other 
sections,  it  must  be  remembered  that  Greeley 
is  one  of  the  best  known  districts  in  the  potato 
world. 

"The  soils  in  their  natural  state  were  not  com- 
parable to  some  of  the  mountain  plateaus  and 
gulches,  where  grow  the  wild  potatoes,  in  their 
adaptability  to  potato  growing.  Alfalfa  growing 
and  storage  of  water  were  necessary  before  potatoes 
could  be  produced  to  the  amount  of  10,000  car- 
loads and  upward  per  year. 

"There  were  no  popple  washes,  leaf  mould  from 
mountain  slopes  or  accumulation  of  dead  grasses 
on  the  plains  to  furnish  stored  food  for  the  crop. 
Cactus  of  short  growth  as  a  rule  indicated  those 
pliable  rich  loams  containing  granite  sand  as  an 
enduring  base  for  the  welfare  of  the  potato. 

"The  soil,  so  rich  in  mineral  elements,  was  de- 
ficient in  humus,  and  it  was  not  until  alfalfa  had 
been  grown  some  years  that  any  tonnage  was  pro- 
duced except  here  and  there.  The  breaking  up  of 
alfalfa  at  first  gave  an  excess  of  humus  in  that  it 
forced  vine  and  early  growth;  the  tubers  set  on  and 
matured  during  the  excessive  heat  of  summer. 
An  occasional  run  or  two  of  river  water  at  the 


368  THE  POTATO 

right  time  gave  heavy  tonnage  and  indicated  what 
was  to  be.  It  became  plain  that  regulated  supply 
of  water  must  be  served;  that  in  this  district  late 
potatoes  must  be  held  back  to  make  their  tuber 
growth  during  cool  weather. 

"Even  though  the  first  reservoirs  of  magnitude 
were  completed  by  the  farmers  at  a  time  to  in- 
crease production  —  which  found  a  light  demand 
during  the  panic  period  of  1893  —  yet  the  results 
were  so  satisfactory  that  the  building  of  reser- 
voirs has  been  continued  ever  since.  Except  in 
those  districts  where  potatoes  can  be  allowed  to 
mature  during  the  heat  of  the  summer,  or  in  those 
rare  instances  where  the  river  supply  is  continu- 
ous, reservoirs  are  a  necessity.  Once  potatoes 
have  set  on  they  must  be  kept  moist  so  their 
growth  be  continuous.  If  arrested  growth  takes 
place  and  they  are  then  watered  the  further  de- 
velopment will  be  in  the  form  of  knobs  that  make 
rough  potatoes. 

"Those  who  believe  that  potatoes  must  have  an 
exactly  suitable  soil  for  successful  culture  should 
visit  the  Greeley  district.  Not  only  do  the  soils 
vary  from  heavy  clay  or  adobe  to  sand,  which 
need  entirely  different  handling,  but  also  the  same 
fields  that  have  raised  potatoes  for  forty  years  in 
rotation  with  other  crops  are  now  handled  in  other 
ways  than  were  formerly  expedient.  A  rising 
water  table  due  to  pressure  from  irrigated  lands 
at  higher  levels  has  necessitated  more  aeration  by 
thorough  cultivation  of  the  soil. 

"Had  we  been  told  twenty  years  ago  what  was 
needed  to  raise  good  potatoes  —  brains  and  hard 
work  —  we  likely  would  have  quit  right  there,  but 
we  gradually  grew  into  it  and  perfected  the  sys- 
tem which  can  best  be  studied  in  all  its  varieties 


THE  POTATO  369 

ill  the  Greelej^  district,  where  work  is  thorough  and 
intense;  varieties  of  potatoes  studied  for  their 
particular  adaptations,  and  the  method  of  culture 
also  made  to  fit  the  potato. 

"The  growing  of  potatoes  begins  with  seed 
growing  or  its  purchase.  The  selection  is  only 
partly  carried  out  before  the  seed  is  cut,  and  must 
continue  through  that  process,  rejecting  every- 
thing that  shows  badly  under  the  knife.  The 
preparation  of  the  ground  has  begun  years  before 
with  the  seeding  of  alfalfa  to  enrich  it  with  manure, 
and  by  its  root  contents.  When  the  specially 
built  alfalfa  plows  turn  the  sod  we  are  nearer  the 
last  end  of  potato  growing  than  the  beginning,  for 
we  have  the  seed  selected  and  the  medium  in 
which  it  is  to  be  grown  full  of  stored  fertility,  the 
result  of  forethought.  The  good  seed  is  planted 
at  the  right  moment  and  the  land  is  not  allowed 
to  rest,  for  the  heavy  horses  in  harrowing,  leveling, 
and  planting  have  compacted  it  too  much  and  lack 
of  air  circulation  breeds  disease.  The  cultivators 
at  once  follow  the  march  left  by  the  planter  and 
should  run  as  deep  as  a  plow  sole  stirring  and 
aerating  the  soil. 

"From  then  on  clean,  absolutely  clean,  cultiva- 
tion until  the  time  when  the  ditches  are  put  in  to 
guide  the  water  through  the  rows.  The  depth  of 
these  will  vary  according  to  the  fall  of  the  land, 
and  what  is  known  as  the  Kersey,  a  wooden  mold- 
board  ditcher,  is  much  used.  This  has  an  attach- 
ment for  distributing  earth  on  top  of  the  rows,  to 
keep  potatoes  from  frost  and  sun-scald.  Just 
when  the  water  and  how  much,  whether  in  every 
other  row  or  all,  is  something  which  every  farmer 
must  know  for  himself,  for  the  time  will  vary  ac- 
cording to  the  condition  of  the  soil,  altitude,  and 


370  THE  POTATO 

variety  of  potato,  and  it  will  also  vary  with  the 
changing  seasons. 

"Besides  the  remarkable  energy  of  Greeley 
people  in  perfecting  their  system  of  potato  growing 
and  originating  tools  and  methods  of  culture, 
something  must  also  be  credited  to  their  system  of 
storage  and  marketing.  Probably  nowhere  else 
are  such  perfect  potato  cellars  to  be  found  upon 
the  farms,  or  as  convenient  and  large  a  supply 
of  potatoes  along  the  tracks  which  can  be  dis- 
patched at  a  few  hours'  notice.  Besides  this, 
there  is  always  a  large  number  of  cars  the 
routing  of  which  can  be  changed  to  meet  urgent 
demands. 

"Many  varieties  of  potatoes  have  been  experi- 
mented with  and  discarded,  and  changes  have  only 
been  made  when  a  variety  has  thoroughly  proved 
itself.  The  Early  Rose  gave  way  to  the  New  York, 
Rural,  or  Carman  group  on  heavy  soils  or  those 
with  a  cool  subsoil.  Pearls  in  one  form  or  another 
are  a  great  standby.  The  Rose  seedhng,  or,  as 
it  is  sometimes  called,  the  Greeley  Red,  fills  the 
demand  for  red  potatoes.  The  Early  Late  Ohios 
are  also  largely  grown,  and  for  all  these  there  is  a 
general  score  card  of  perfection  in  the  grower's 
mind  when  he  has  an  order  to  fill,  which  enables 
him  to  satisfy  his  customers." 

There  is  no  one  in  a  district  in  closer  touch  with 
affairs  than  the  dealer.     I.  Rothschild  says : 

"There  is  planted  this  year  (1911)  35,000  acres, 
and  for  the  past  eight  years  there  have  been 
planted  25,000  to  35,000  acres  each  year,  the  crop 
running  from  six  to  fourteen  thousand  carloads 
each  year. 


THE  POTATO  371 

"Most  of  our  farmers  grow  potatoes  in  pref- 
erence to  any  other  crop,  and  the  only  reason 
more  are  not  grown  is  because  the  land  is  not  in 
just  the  right  condition,  and  then  again  it  is  an 
expensive  crop  to  grow. 

"As  to  markets,  we  have  Texas  first.  This  is  a 
short  haul  and  quick  service;  that  is,  the  Texas 
people  can  get  'spuds'  from  Greeley  quicker  than 
from  any  other  section  and  the  freight  rates  are 
as  low  and  some  lower  than  in  a  great  many  of  the 
potato  districts.  Again,  we  have  onions  which 
we  are  privileged  to  ship  with  potatoes,  and  the 
smaller  towns  which  would  not  use  a  car  of 
onions  will  buy  the  potatoes  in  order  to  get 
twenty  or  thirty  sacks  of  onions  in  the  car  with 
their  potatoes. 

"Different  locahties  use  a  different  style  of  po- 
tato. For  instance,  Chicago  wants  a  rather  large, 
long  potato,  while  St.  Louis  wants  a  round,  med- 
ium size,  and  Kansas  City  demands  the  very 
largest.  Then,  there  are  a  few  places  that  will 
take  them  "  mixed,  and  it  all  depends  on  the 
strength  of  the  market  as  to  whether  they  will 
take  them  at  all. 

"As  to  yield,  we  have. one  section  of  the  Greeley 
district  that  last  year  averaged  200  bushels  to  the 
acre,  and  another  section  not  fifteen  miles  away 
where  the  average  was  less  than  fifty  bushels  to 
the  acre.  Altogether,  the  average  last  year  was 
100  bushels  to  the  acre,  and  we  had  one  year 
when  they  averaged  250  bushels  for  the  entire 
district. 

"Rurals  and  Pearls  are  our  standard  varieties, 
with  6  per  cent,  planted  to  Pearls,  but  Rurals  are 
gaining.  It  seems  that  some  of  our  growers  are 
just  learning  how  to  grow  Rurals." 


372  THE  POTATO 

The  following  table  shows  the  cars  sold  at  vari- 
ous seasons,  the  price,  and  total  cars  produced 

Prices 
Cars.  Jan.     Feb.         Mar.     Apr. 

1.  1.  1.  1. 


fc.  i''lfo£.:::-:::::::::::::::2:ZJ^iio  ^^-^^  $105  $1.25 

Jan.     1.  190S 1.800  \      „n  -,.           _.         _„ 

Feb.  15.1903 1.090 1      ^^  ^^          ^^         ^^ 

Jan.     1.1904 4.000  to  4,500  \       _^  „„       .„ 

Mar.   1.  1904 1.800/       ^"  ""       ^"^       ^  ^" 

Jan.  13.  1905 6,030  \     „„  ,„           » 

Mar .124,  1905 4.000  to  4.500  /      ^"  '"          *^           '^^ 

Feb.    1.  1906 3,500) 

Feb.  24,  1906 2,575  -'-      75  65          65          60 

Apr.  12,  1906 1.020) 

Mar.  11.  1907 1,627  \      -„  ^-           -,-           -^ 

Apr.  12.  1907 550/      ^^  ^^           ^*          '^O 

Feb.   1.  1908 3.000  to  3,500  \       -,.  g^.           „,       ,„„ 

Apr.   7.  1908 500  /       '^^  ^^           ^^       ^'^^ 

Jan.    5.1909 5.000 1       j.,  „q       ,.         ,„ 

Feb.    1,1909 3,000/      ^^  **"       ^^*       *  "^^ 

Mar.   1.1910 2.000         60  G5           45           25 

Jan.     1.1911 2,500\       _-  „.           q. 

Feb.    1,1911 1,400/       '^  "*           ^^ 

.   Season  1910-11 6,500  cars. 

1909-10       8,000       " 

1908-09        11,000       " 

1907-08       9,000      " 

"        1906-07 10,000      " 

"        1905-06 11.000      " 

"        1904-05 14,000      " 

"        1903-04       6,500      " 

"        1902-03        4,500      " 

"        1901-02       5.000      " 


THE    WESTERN    SLOPE    COUNTRY 

The   districts    that   supply    the    markets    with 
Western    Slope   potatoes   are    Carbondale,   Rifle, 


THE  POTATO  373 

New  Castle,  Eagle,  Gypsum,  Montrose,  Delta, 
Olathe,  Grand  Junction.  The  conditions  in  all 
of  these  are  very  similar  and  a  description  of  one 
serves  to  describe  all. 

Because  it  was  a  leader  in  making  the  present 
popularity  of  the  product,  the  Carbondale  ter- 
ritory will  be  described  most  in  detail. 

Carbondale  is  just  off  the  Roaring  Fork  of  the 
Grand  River.  From  the  Frying  Pan  —  a  small 
tributary  at  the  head  of  the  Roaring  Fork  —  to 
Glenwood  Springs,  where  it  joins  the  Grand,  the 
Roaring  Fork  is  about  thirty  miles  long,  and  the 
valley  is  about  one  mile  wide.  It  is  a  rough, 
mountainous  country,  with  an  elevation  of  from 
5,000  to  8,000  feet. 

The  farming  land  in  this  valley  is  not  in  one 
continuous  body,  but  in  scattered  areas  along  the 
river  and  its  tributaries  and  on  the  bench  land  ad- 
jacent. 

It  is  in  this  sort  of  country  that  the  potato  is 
found  growing  wild.  The  soil  is  open  and  well 
drained  and  the  native  vegetation  consists  of  rich 
grasses,  sage  brush,  and  trees. 

The  excellence  of  the  potatoes  grown  at  Car- 
bondale first  attracted  the  interest  of  the  partic- 
ular hotel  and  dining-car  trade.  Seven  years  ago 
(1905)  Mt.  Sopris  Farm  contracted  to  furnish 
the  New  York  Central  Railroad  with  potatoes. 
Baking  and  cooking  tests  were  made  at  the  farm 
by  the  buyer.  The  business  grew,  and  Carbon- 
dale had  the  first  growers'  association  on  the 
Western  Slope.  Now  this  product  is  known  from 
the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific. 

In  an  interesting  publication  regarding  the 
country  is  the  following  descriptive  matter:  "Ly- 
ing within  the  shelter  of  high  mountains  at  an  alti- 


374  THE  POTATO 

tude  slightly  over  6,000  feet,  shielded  from  severe 
storms  and  extremes  of  temperature,  with  pure, 
dry,  invigorating  mountain  air  and  the  purest  of 
mountain  water,  entirely  free  from  alkalies,  it  is  a 
natural  health  resort  and  an  ideal  place  in  which  to 
make  a  home — an  unpeopled  valley,  luxuriant 
in  wild  vegetation  and  threaded  by  crystal  streams 
fed  by  the  inexhaustible  snows  of  the  giant  Mt. 
Sopris  and  surrounding  ranges,  transformed  in  less 
than  twenty-five  years  into  one  of  the  garden 
spots  of  the  globe.  This,  in  brief,  is  the  story  of 
the  Carbondale  district,  a  story  that  typifies  the 
highest  achievement  of  natural  resources  and  hu- 
man resourcefulness  and  cooperation." 

One  of  the  most  popular  booklets  ever  published 
about  the  potato,  if  popularity  can  be  judged  by 
demand,  is  that  issued  by  Mt.  Sopris  Farm  en- 
titled "A  Modern  Delicacy."  Because  that  pub- 
lication is  not  now  obtainable  it  is  being  practically 
reproduced  in  the  following: 

A    MODERN    DELICACY MT.    SOPRIS 

FARM    POTATOES 

Next  to  bread  and  meat,  the  most  important 
article  of  food  to  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  is  the 
potato.  Notwithstanding  its  importance  as  a  food 
product,  comparatively  little  attention  has  been 
paid  to  the  development  and  improvement  of  the 
potato  until  recent  years.  The  writer,  having  spent 
a  number  of  years  in  trying  to  grow  varieties  of 
potatoes  that  would  be  of  such  quality  and  perfect- 
ness  in  economical  conformation  as  to  command  the 
highest  market  prices,  and  having  met  with  a  fair 
degree  of  success,  is  constantly  appealed  to  by 
growers  for  information  as  to  methods  and  by  con- 


i 


o 

O 


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3 

WW 


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C/2 


Lord  Ogilvy,   agricultural  editor    Denver    Post,  Denver.  Colo 


THE  POTATO  375 

sumers  for  a  history  of  the  operation  in  producing 
the  three  varieties  that  I  am  now  growing  and 
which  are  rapidly  attracting  the  attention  of  the 
trade  all  over  the  country  because  of  their  merit. 
In  order  to  answer  these  questions  intelligently,  I 
have  in  this  manner  explained,  as  briefly  as  pos- 
sible, something  of  the  methods  now  being  suc- 
cessfully used  in  the  Carbon  dale  potato  district 
and  on  Mt.  Sopris  Farm,  and  a  history  of  the  prin- 
cipal varieties  grown. 

In  order  to  produce  a  perfect  specimen  of  any 
article  one  must  first  have  in  mind  an  ideal.  We 
must  therefore  understand  w^hat  constitutes  a 
perfect  potato,  both  from  the  standpoint  of  the 
consumer  and  the  trade.  The  consumer  desires 
a  potato  that  when  cooked  will  be  dry,  mealy,  or, 
when  crushed,  like  flour.  The  trade  wants  a  potato 
that  is  clean  and  dry,  with  a  rough  skin,  not  easily 
bruised  or  broken,  as  a  broken  sldn  provides  the 
nucleus  for  rot. 

Uniformity.  —  One  of  the  most  important  speci- 
fications in  the  production  of  an  ideal  potato  is 
uniformity  in  size.  It  is,  of  course,  impossible  to 
grow  potatoes  all  the  same  size,  but  I  make  it  a 
point  to  grade  the  potatoes  before  marketing  into 
nearly  uniform  sizes.  In  cooking  the  tuber  this  is 
important,  as  ^vhen  a  small  potato  is  cooked  with 
a  large  one,  either  the  small  one  becomes  overdone 
or  the  large  one  underdone.  With  nearly  equal 
sizes,  they  all  cook  alike. 

Quality.  —  Potatoes  are  like  fruit  in  one  respect : 
they  are  best  when  fully  ripe.  A  well-ripened 
potato,  matured  in  proper  soil,  is  a  luxury  for  an 
epicure  when  properly  cooked.  The  unripe  po- 
tato when  cooked  is  wet,  soggy  and  clammy.  The 
starch  molecules  have  not  been  transformed  as 


376  THE  POTATO 

they  should  be  and  the  potato  is  not  as  digestible. 
The  well-ripened  potato  cooks  dry  even  in  water 
and  crushes  into  a  flaky,  powdery  mass,  with  the 
starch  in  fine,  granulated  form. 

Conformation.  —  It  is  only  within  recent  years 
that  potato  breeders  have  paid  much  attention  to 
the  formation  of  the  potato.  The  ideal  potato 
must  be  regular  in  shape,  round  or  oval,  with  eyes 
nearly  flush  with  the  surface.  Large  hotels  and 
restaurants  are  compelled  to  use  machines  for 
paring.  With  the  old-fashioned,  irregular  shaped 
potato,  the  loss  in  paring  was  often  equal  to  a  third 
of  the  weight  of  the  tuber.  The  Mt.  Sopris  po- 
tatoes can  be  handled  very  economically  in  a  par- 
ing machine,  the  loss  being  practically  nothing 
but  the  tough  skin.  In  the  matter  of  economy, 
therefore,  the  regular  conformation  of  the  potato 
is  highly  important. 

The  original  potatoes  were  found  growing  wild 
in  the  mountain  districts  of  North  and  South 
America.  In  looking  for  ideal  climatic  and  soil 
conditions,  therefore,  we  have  but  to  study  the 
environment  of  the  wild  potato. 

An  important  effect  of  the  climate  is  the  uni- 
formity in  the  quality  of  the  product  from  year  to 
year.  Climatic  conditions  in  the  mountain  sec- 
tions of  Colorado  do  not  apparently  vary  enough 
to  materially  affect  the  quality  of  the  crop  from 
one  year  to  another,  and  the  crop  this  year  is  as 
good  in  quality  as  last  year,  and  will  be  the  same 
next  year.  This  is  highly  important  in  estabhsh- 
ing  a  commercial  demand. 

My  experiments  in  improving  and  developing 
the  varieties  of  potatoes  grown  on  Mt.  Sopris 
Farm  cover  a  period  of  about  fifteen  years.  My 
first  work  was  with  the  Perfect  Peachblow.     This 


THE  POTATO  377 

is  an  improved  type  of  the  old  Peachblow,  a 
variety  grown  in  this  country  for  over  fifty  years, 
and  is  one  of  the  oldest  varieties  in  existence. 
Originally  it  was  yellow  fleshed,  often  hollow  and 
bitter  of  taste.  Peter  Henderson,  a  well-known 
New  York  seedsman,  developed  this  variety,  and 
in  1883  some  of  his  Perfect  Peachblows  were 
brought  to  Colorado  and  planted  in  the  lloaring 
Fork  Valle3^  The  perfected  variety  was  of  white 
flesh,  never  hollow  nor  bitter,  and  proved  an  ideal 
potato.  It  was  round  and  slightly  flattened  on  one 
side,  with  few  eyes  and  a  tough  skin.  It  became  a 
great  favorite  and  is  still  the  leading  variety  on  the 
western  slope  of  Colorado. 

Perfect  Peachblow.  —  My  first  efforts  were  in 
the  direction  of  increasing  the  tonnage  yield  of 
this  varietv.  The  trouble  most  found  was  that 
the  hills  produced  one  or  two  potatoes  of  great 
size  and  many  small  ones.  The  large  potatoes 
often  cracked  open  and  the  crop  as  a  whole  lacked 
uniformity.  My  method  was  first  to  plant  the 
size  of  potato  I  desired  to  produce  and  later  to 
select  my  seed  from  hills  producing  not  less  than 
twelve  potatoes  of  uniform  type  and  size.  By 
this  method  I  have  been  able  to  secure  a  crop  of 
uniform  and  fixed  type  characteristics.  This  plan 
resulted. in  greatly  increased  production,  but  sub- 
sequently I  found  it  advisble  to  sacrifice  some  of 
this  increased  yield  to  quality.  I  have  succeeded 
in  producing  a  uniform  type  of  Perfect  Peachblow, 
of  fine  quality,  fixed  type  characteristic  and  fairly 
uniform  size. 

Dalmeny  Beauty.  —  Several  years  ago  I  had  an 
opportunity  to  see  the  work  being  done  in  type 
breeding  of  potatoes  on  the  Earl  of  Kosebery's 
Dalmenv  Farm  in  Scotland.     Since  then  I  have 


378  THE  POTATO 

imported  twelve  different  varieties  of  these  fine 
Scotch  bred  potatoes,  but  have  found  only  two 
varieties  that  proved  adaptable  to  the  Roaring 
Fork  district.  Of  these  the  Dalmenv  Beautv  has 
proved  very  promising.  It  is  a  white  fleshed, 
medium  to  large  potato,  oval  to  oblong,  shallow 
eved,  with  a  clean  and  attractive  skin.  The  vines 
grow  from  three  to  five  feet  high,  and  it  is  one  of 
the  heaviest  yielders  known.  One  stalk  in  the 
Carbondale  district  produced  twenty-five  tubers 
weighing  eleven  and  one  half  pounds.  Four 
acres  in  the  same  section  produced  307  sacks  per 
acre,  IIG  pounds  to  the  sack.  It  is  a  strong  feeder 
and  needs  rich  soil. 

Challenge.  —  This  is  another  Scotch  variety  im- 
ported from  Dalmeny  Farm.  It  is  a  medium  late 
variety  of  high  quality.  It  is  white  fleshed  and 
mealv.  The  skin  is  smooth  and  white.  The 
tubers  are  oblong,  medium  to  large,  with  scjuare 
shoulders.  A  good  cropper.  This  year  one  plat 
of  ten  acres  at  Carbondale  yielded  277  sacks  per 
acre,  IIG  pounds  to  the  sack.  It  is  a  very  high 
quality  potato,  and  those  grown  in  Carbondale 
have  been  used  for  the  past  four  years  on  the 
Vanderbilt  system  dining  cars. 

In  my  opinion  the  Perfect  Peachblow,  as  de- 
veloped in  the  Carbondale  district  of  Colorado, 
is  about  as  near  the  ideal  potato  as  has  yet  been 
grown.  One  difficulty  most  potato  growers  have 
had  to  contend  with  in  other  sections  is  the  fact 
that  the  various  varieties  "run  out"  in  two  or  three 
years,  or,  in  other  words,  deteriorate  in  quality. 
The  Perfect  Peachblow  is  an  exception.  Notwith- 
standing the  years  of  injudicious  methods  in  seed 
selection  and  cultivation,  the  variety  is  as  vigor- 
ous and  healthy  as  ever  and  is  steadily  improving. 


THE  POTATO  379 

It  has  an  astonishingly  strong  constitution,  and 
seems  to  easily  resist  the  many  diseases  that 
afflict  potatoes  elsewhere.  Much  of  this  is  due 
to  the  ideal  conditions  that  exist  here.  It  is  im- 
possible to  grow  a  firm  texture,  high  quahty  po- 
tato in  a  hot  soil.  The  soil  here  is  always  cool  and 
the  tuber  has  plenty  of  time  to  mature. 

The  consuming  public  has  not  yet  learned  to 
discriminate  in  the  quality  of  potatoes.  Grad- 
ually the  demand  for  the  high  quality  potato  is 
increasing,  however,  and  the  time  will  come  when 
the  people  of  the  East  will  insist  upon  having  the 
fine  tubers  grown  in  the  mountain  valleys  of 
Colorado.  When  that  time  comes  Colorado  will 
produce  twenty  million  bushels  annually  instead 
of  six  million,  as  at  present,  and  the  fame  of  the 
Carbondale  potato  will  be  equal  to  that  of  the 
Rocky  Ford  cantaloupe. 

The  important  requisite  in  securing  the  best 
results  m  potato  growing  is  to  plant  in  an  open, 
porous,  well-prepared  soil.  The  soil  must  be  well 
supplied  with  humus,  or  vegetable  mould,  so  that  it 
is  open  and  easily  accessible  to  air,  as  the  best  po- 
tatoes must  have  air,  especially  when  maturing. 
Excessive  irrigation  contracts  and  solidifies  the 
soil.  I  practise  frequent  cultivation,  and  with 
special  machinery  ridge  the  hills  high  and  wide, 
with  a  deep  trench  for  the  irrigation.  For  at  least 
two  months  previous  to  maturing  I  do  not  irri- 
gate, allowing  the  tubers  to  mature  in  a  soil 
almost  dry,  the  tap  and  feeder  roots  providing 
all  the  moisture  needed  for  the  tubers.  Bv  this 
method  the  tubers  when  ripe  come  from  the  soil 
in  a  clean,  bright  condition;  the  skin  is  tough 
and  the  potato  keeps  better. 

The  Perfect  Peachblow  is  the  best  keepmg  po- 


380  THE  POTATO 

tato  known  when  grown  in  this  manner,  often 
keeping  until  the  middle  of  August.  It  is  an  ideal 
potato  for  the  early  spring  and  summer  market, 
being  in  prime  condition. 

That  a  cool,  porous  soil  is  largely  responsible 
for  the  best  quality  in  potato  growing  was  evi- 
denced at  the  Aspen  Fair  this  year,  when  the  first 
prize  potatoes  in  a  most  wonderful  exhibition  were 
found  to  come  from  an  altitude  of  8,100  feet  above 
the  sea. 

Probably  the  most  important  item  in  securing 
a  high  quality  potato  is  seed  selection.  Carbon- 
dale  growers  are  now  exercising  the  greatest  care. 
We  are  trying  to  secure  fixed  characteristics,  and 
the  seed  potatoes  from  this  district  will  do  well 
in  most  any  potato  section  where  proper  conditions 
can  be  had,  and  the  crop  will  be  found  to  possess 
the  uniformity  as  to  size  and  quality  that  is  so 
necessary  to  success. 

The  proof  of  the  pudding  is  in  the  eating.  So  is 
the  proof  of  a  high  quality  potato  to  be  found  at 
the  table.  It  must  be  properly  cooked  and  served, 
and  thus  the  Carbondale  potato  will  be  found  one 
of  the  dehcacies  of  the  world. 

Few  people  know  that  a  potato  has  a  season  of 
best  eating  quality,  the  same  as  an  apple  or  peach. 
The  Perfect  Peachblow  is  best  after  the  first  of 
January.  The  Dalmeny  Beauty  is  best  from  the 
first  of  November  until  April.  The  Challenge  is 
best  from  September  to  January. 

No  part  of  the  world  is  better  fitted  by  nature 
for  growing  potatoes  than  the  mountain  districts 
of  Colorado.  Those  sections  where  the  soil  is 
largely  composed  of  ground  granite  and  sandstone 
are  of  course  best  adapted.  The  Roaring  Fork 
and  Crystal  River  Valley  section  of  Colorado  is  as 


THE  POTATO  3S1 

nearly  perfect  in  soil  conditions  as  can  be  found, 
and  the  potatoes  grown  there  are  not  excelled 
anywhere  in  the  world,  and  are  equalled  in  but  few 
places.  With  the  requisite  climatic  and  soil 
conditions,  and  the  use  of  careful  and  intelligent 
methods  in  seed  selection  and  the  maintenance  of 
a  uniform  type,  few  crops  can  be  grown  that  will 
return  better  profits  for  the  producer. 


CHAPTER  XXXIII 

IDAHO TWIN      FALLS   COUNTRY UPPER      SNAKE 

RIVER 

IDAHO  is  one  of  the  newest  states  in  the 
Union,  both  in  point  of  history  and  agricul- 
tural development.  As  in  most  of  the  Western 
States,  mining  caused  the  first  immigration. 

Lewis  and  Clark  went  through  the  Snake  River 
Valley  in  1805,  but  in  1860  the  state  was  inhabited 
only  by  the  Nez  Perces,  Palouse,  and  Coeur  d'Alene 
Indians  in  the  north,  and  the  Blackfoot,  Bannock, 
and  Shoshone  in  the  Snake  River  country. 

Irrigation  farming  is  making  southern  Idaho  one 
of  the  richest  and  most  famous  agricultm-al  sec- 
tions in  the  world.  The  first  irrigation  was  along 
the  small  streams  where  individuals  took  out 
ditches  to  water  their  small  farms  and  fields. 
Local  consumption  took  all  of  the  first  farmers' 
produce  and  more.  Even  now  the  people  of  Idaho 
import  much  of  their  foodstuffs. 

The  next  stage  in  irrigation  was  the  company  or 
community  ditch  system,  where  a  few  hundred  or 
thousand  acres  were  watered  by  a  number  of  farmers 
working  together,  doing  most  of  the  work  them- 
selves. All  of  the  work  performed  in  these  first 
two  stages  of  the  business  Vv^as  done  as  cheaply  as 
possible,  and  comparatively  little  capital  was  re- 
quired. 

In  the  Twin  Falls  country  the  first  irrigation  was 
along  Rock  Creek  and  Goose  Creek  on  the  south 

382 


THE  POTATO  S8S 

side;  along  Wood  River  above  and  below  Sho- 
shone; on  Clover  Creek  on  the  north;  and  from 
springs  in  the  north  side  of  the  Snake  Kiver  Cafiou 
at  Blue  Lakes  and  along  down  the  river  to  the 
Hagerman  Valley.  Successful  crops  of  fruit,  grain, 
hay,  and  vegetables  have  been  raised  in  these 
places  by  pioneer  stockmen  and  miners  for  forty 
years. 

The  great  Snake  River  plains,  the  most  fertile 
and  best  drained  agricultural  section  in  the  state, 
were  undeveloped  because  milhons  of  dollars  was 
required  for  large  improvements  before  the  settler 
with  ordinary  means  could  find  a  place. 

To  I.  B.  Perrine  of  Blue  Lakes  is  due  the  credit 
for  successfully  starting  the  extensive  irrigation 
work  in  the  Twin  Falls  country.  He  located  the 
dam  at  Milner  from  which  water  is  diverted,  and 
interested  capital  in  the  possibilities  of  the  countr3\ 
J.  S.  &  W.  S.  Kuhn  of  Pittsburgh,  Pa.,  have  spent 
and  are  spending  twenty  million  dollars  in  develop- 
ing the  possibilities  of  this  agricultural  empire. 
Five  years  ago  sage  brush  and  coyote  reigned 
supreme;  now  40,000  people  have  their  homes  in 
the  Twin  Falls  country. 

There  are  54,000,000  acres  of  land  in  Idaho.  Of 
this  amount  about  2,500,000  are  irrigated.  Over 
450,000  acres  are  contained  in  the  irrigation  pro- 
jects already  built  and  being  built  by  the  Kuhn 
interests. 

At  the  present  time  the  tracts  reclaimed  in  Idaho 
by  J.  S.  &  W.  S.  Kuhn  of  Pittsburgh  and  their  as- 
sociates include  the  first,  second,  and  third  segre- 
gations of  the  Twin  Falls  North  Side  Land  &  AVater 
Company,  embracing  220,000  acres;  that  of  the 
Twin  Falls  Salmon  River  Land  &  Water  Com- 
pany, embracing  80,000  acres;  and    that  of   the 


384  THE  POTATO 

Twin  Falls  Oakley  Land  &  Water  Company,  with 
50,000  acres;  also  pumping  projects  covering 
100,000  acres. 

The  achievements  of  these  organizations  are 
among  the  greatest  in  the  history  of  irrigation  and 
agriculture. 

To  develop  in  the  desert  one  of  the  richest 
agricultural  districts  in  the  world  is  to  produce 
wealth  for  the  state  and  nation,  and  make  it  won- 
derfully fast. 

More  development  per  acre  is  made  in  five  years 
under  these  big  projects  than  was  the  case  in  the 
fertile  corn  belt  in  thirty.  More  capital  is  being 
used  in  developing  farms  now  than  ever  before,  and 
nowhere  is  this  condition  more  marked  than  in 
this  section  of  Idaho. 

The  water  supply  of  the  greater  part  of  the  west- 
ern slope  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  system  is  far  in 
excess  of  the  land  available  for  irrigation.  There 
can  never  be  any  question  of  an  abundance  of 
water  for  the  irrigation  of  all  of  the  lands  in  south- 
ern Idaho  if  it  is  properly  cared  for,  and  never  any 
possible  question  about  those  with  the  first  water 
rights. 

By  actual  test  products  grown  in  the  irrigated 
districts  of  the  West  have  a  higher  food  value  than 
those  of  any  country  where  conditions  are  less  favor- 
able for  crop  perfection.  Soil,  sunshine  and  moisture 
control  are  responsible  for  this.  For  instance,  the 
average  weight  per  bushel  of  the  oats  grown  in  the 
Middle  West  and  East  for  1908  and  1909  was 
twenty-four  to  twenty-six  pounds.  In  the  irri- 
gated Twin  Falls  country  oats  weigh  thirty-eight 
to  forty-nine  pounds  per  bushel.  A  legal  bushel  is 
thirty-two  pounds.  Oatmeal  manufacturers  have 
found  that  oats  produced  bj^  irrigation  contain  7 


ToLato  di^'ging  near  Twin  Falls 


Planet   Jr.  fuiixjwer  or  ridger  lor  hilling    }>otatoes. 
attached  to  cultivators.       Manulaclmcd  hy  S.  F.  A! 
Philadel])hia.  Pa. 


These 


are 
Co., 


Polatoes   near  Jerome  —  junior   author   in   field.       Photo   taken 

August  10,  1000 


Irrigating  potatoes  near  Wendell 
SCENES   IN   THK   TWIN    FALLS   COUNTRY,    IDAHO 


THE  POTATO  385 

per  cent,  more  meat  as  compared  with  hull  than 
any  other  oats  they  have  milled.  Idaho  sugar- 
beets  have  a  high  sugar  content,  and  Secretary  of 
Agriculture  James  Wilson,  the  father  of  sugar-beet 
industry  on  this  continent,  has  said  that  it  would  be 
possible  for  Idaho  to  supply  the  United  States  with 
its  sugar.  Idaho  fruit  is  high  in  nutriment  and 
sugar  content,  because  these  elements  are  elabo- 
rated by  the  plant  in  the  presence  of  sunshine.  Its 
delicious  flavor  and  fine  texture  are  very  marked. 
Meat  produced  from  rich  grasses  is  in  turn  high 
in  food  value. 

One  of  the  most  important  factors  in  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  market  for  all  high  class  agricultural 
products  is  the  uniform  permanency  of  supply. 
The  conditions  are  under  such  perfect  control,  and 
the  Twin  Falls  country  is  of  such  extent,  that  this 
is  absolutely  provided  for. 

The  Twin  Falls  country  of  southern  Idaho  is  in 
about  the  centre  of  what  is  commonly  called  the 
Snake  River  lava  plains.  Until  the  recent  appli- 
cation of  water  to  large  tracts  of  land  here  it  has 
been  known  as  the  Snake  River  desert.  It  was 
never  a  barren  desert,  however,  but  covered  with  a 
growth  of  desert  plants  and  grasses,  making  an 
excellent  winter  stock  range. 

Geologists  report  that  southern  Idaho  was  orig- 
inally a  rough,  rocky  country,  the  rocks  being 
granite,  rhyolite  quartzite,  and  limestone.  The 
valley  of  the  ancient  Snake  River  was  broad  and 
several  valleys  opened  out  from  it  into  the  moun- 
tains to  the  north  and  the  south.  After  the  river 
had  worn  to  a  deep  channel,  a  flow  of  lava  or  a 
volcanic  upheaval  obstructed  it  in  the  western  part 
of  the  state,  and  a  lake  covering  a  large  part  of  the 
Snake  River  plains  was  formed.     This  lake  was 


386  THE  POTATO 

gradually  filled  up  with  wash  and  sediment,  and 
with  dust  blown  from  volcanoes.  In  places  this 
sediment  is  known  to  be  1,000  feet  deep.  Flows  of 
lava  from  numerous  vents,  and  deposits  blown  in 
by  the  wind,  added  to  the  superstructure  of  the 
country.  The  lava  flows  to  the  eastward  of  the 
lake  region  have  been  covered  with  wash  from  the 
mountains,  dust  blown  from  the  old  lake  bed  and 
lava  dust  from  old  volcanoes.  The  disintegration 
of  lava  rock  has  also  probably  added  to  the  present 
soil.  While  in  one  way  a  plain,  the  Snake  River 
country  is  more  or  less  broken,  making  soil  drain- 
age perfect.  The  valley  is  surrounded  by  moun- 
tains rising  from  a  few  hundred  to  6,000  feet  above 
the  plains,  and  7,000  to  10,000  feet  above  the  sea 
level. 

The  lava  ash  soil  of  the  Twin  Falls  country  is  fine 
in  texture.  It  is  classed  as  an  arid  or  desert  soil  in 
comparison  with  those  of  the  rain  belt.  Soils 
found  in  a  country  of  light  rainfall,  where  irrigation 
is  absolutely  essential  for  the  production  of  maxi- 
mum yields  of  most  crops,  are  high  in  the  min- 
eral elements  of  fertility  because  the  soluble 
salts  have  never  been  leached  out  bv  the  rains. 
Muck,  peat  or  sour  acid  soils  are  not  found  in  the 
Twin  Falls  country.  A  large  number  of  tests  of 
samples  of  arid  and  humid  soils  shows  that  the 
average  arid  soils  contain  three  times  as  much 
potash,  thirteen  times  as  much  lime,  and  six  times 
as  much  magnesia  as  the  humid  soils.  There  is 
less  humus  in  an  arid  soil.  Humus  is  one  of  the 
chief  sources  of  nitrogen,  and  nitrogen  is  one  of  the 
principal  elements  of  plant  food.  The  humus  of  an 
arid  soil,  however,  contains  three  times  as  much 
nitrogen  as  the  humus  of  a  humid  soil.  Limestone 
soils  are  usually   rich   in    phosphorus,   and  it  is 


>» 

u^ 


O 

05 


—  r. 

-  =0 


o     - 


y    - 


THE  POTATO  387 

proverbial  that  "a  limestone  country  is  a  rich 
country."  The  average  per  centage  of  lime  in 
clay  soils  is  .617.  In  the  lava  ash  soil  of  the 
Twin  Falls  North  Side  tract  there  is  4.5  per  cent. 
An  acid  soil  is  almost  invariably  a  hard  soil  to  grow 
crops  on.  As  a  general  statement,  all  good  soils 
show  an  alkali  reaction — that  is,  they  contain  more 
alkali  salts  than  acids. 

The  fact  that  the  soil  f)f  the  Snake  River  plains 
is  partly  an  seolian  or  wind  deposit  classes  it  with 
the  richest  soils  in  the  world.  It  is  the  deposits 
of  the  dust  of  ages  swept  from  a  desert  country  in 
addition  to  the  lava  dust  from  volcanic  eruptions. 
The  fine  particles  of  soil  are  those  from  which  the 
rootlets  of  the  plant  obtain  their  chief  food  supply. 
The  Twin  Falls  North  Side  soil  classes  as  100  per 
cent.  fine.  In  the  regions  embracing  these  fine, 
rich  deposits  there  are  dust  storms  while  the  coun- 
try is  a  desert,  but  after  irrigation  and  cultivation, 
with  the  consequent  filling  of  the  soil  with  moisture 
and  vegetation,  dust  storms  do  not  occur.  The 
great  plains  of  North  America,  including  a  large 
part  of  the  Mississippi  Valley,  is  a  wind  deposited 
loess  or  loam.  The  fertile  loess  soil  region  in 
northwestern  China,  which  supports  a  dense 
population,  is  of  seolian  origin.  The  soil  of  the 
Twin  Falls  country  consists  of  a  mixture  of  the 
finest  particles  of  the  deposits  from  the  disintegra- 
tion of  the  rock  of  the  mountains  and  plains,  the 
wash  of  the  same,  and  dust  blown  off  the  lake  de- 
posits to  the  west  and  south. 

The  altitude  of  the  Twin  Falls  country  is  from 
2,800  to  4,800  feet.  It  lies  just  south  of  the  43d 
degree  of  north  latitude,  almost  centrally  north  and 
south  in  that  section  around  the  globe  in  which  has 
been   made  the  major  part  of  the  world's  prog- 


388  THE  POTATO 

ress.  It  is  about  400  miles  east  of  the  Pacific 
Ocean,  1,320  miles  west  of  Lake  Michigan,  432 
miles  south  of  the  Canadian  line,  and  700  miles 
due  north  of  the  mouth  of  the  Colorado  River 
at  the  Gulf  of  California.  Three  mountain  ranges 
separate  the  Snake  River  Valley  from  the  Pacific 
Ocean.  The  main  range  of  the  Rockies  protects 
it  on  the  north  and  east  from  the  moisture-laden 
winds  of  the  Japan  current  and  from  the  fury 
of  winds  and  bhzzards  that  are  common  in  the 
plains  country  of  the  eastern  slope.  This  makes 
the  air  dry,  and  while  not  free  from  winds  or  from 
some  rain  and  snow,  destructive  wind  is  not  known. 
The  freedom  from  blizzards  and  excessive  changes, 
and  the  perfect  altitude,  make  possible  the  greatest 
perfection  in  all  crops. 

The  growing  season  is  comparatively  long  and 
the  combination  of  cloudless,  hot  days,  rich  soil,  and 
irrigation  water  in  the  growing  season  matures 
crops  of  quality  and  great  quantity.  The  annual 
precipitation  is  about  fourteen  inches;  the  number 
of  clear  sunny  days  average  annually  300;  the 
highest  temperature  101  degrees;  and  the  lowest 
12  to  20  degrees  below  zero.  The  dry  climate 
makes  prostrations  from  heat  unknown.  There 
are  some  snowstorms  in  winter,  as  everywhere  in 
this  zone,  and  in  the  transformation  of  the  desert 
wind  and  dust  storms  occasionally  occur.  Almost 
all  of  the  rainfall  is  in  winter  and  spring,  making 
the  growing  and  harvesting  season  practically  free 
from  profit  losing  storms.  The  last  killing  frost  in 
the  spring  is  about  May  15th,  and  the  first  in  the 
fall  about  September  25tli. 

Southern  Idaho  soil  has  demonstrated  that  it 
contains  the  elements  required  to  make  deliciously 
flavored  potatoes,  especially  where  the  quality  of 


THE  POTATO  389 

water  applied  is  under  absolute  control,  as  with 
irrigation. 

Potatoes  grow  best  in  a  mellow,  deep,  easily 
worked,  rich  soil,  one  that  docs  not  bake  and  is 
well  drained.  Soils  classed  as  sandy  loam  and 
volcanic  ash  are  excellent.  Drainage  is  important, 
as  the  water  table  should  be  at  least  three  feet 
below  the  surface.  With  the  gradual  but  marked 
fall  of  the  Twin  Falls  North  Side  tract  to  the  south 
and  wTst  toward  the  Snake  River,  and  the  numer- 
ous draws  and  coulees,  it  is  one  of  the  best  drained 
tracts  of  land  in  the  world. 

A  light,  fine  soil  is  easily  worked.  It  responds 
more  quickly  to  culture,  and  the  potatoes  at  digging 
time  come  out  clean  and  free  from  dirt,  and  keep 
better.  Soil  and  crop  experts,  without  exception, 
class  the  soils  on  the  Twin  Falls  North  Side  tract 
as  perfect  for  the  growing  of  potatoes.  It  is  chem- 
ically right,  and  has  produced  crops  that  have 
never  been  equalled  in  quality  anywhere.  The 
tubers  grown  in  it  are  smooth,  clear  skinned,  con- 
tain a  high  per  centage  of  solid  matter,  are  firm,  of 
excellent  flavor,  and  when  dry  come  out  of  the 
ground  as  clean  as  new  dollars  from  the  mint. 
Besides  that,  the  yield  per  hill  and  per  acre  is  very 
large. 

The  principal  shipping  points  in  this  territory 
are  Idaho  Falls,  American  Falls,  Rupert,  Burley, 
Turn  Falls,  Buhl,  Jerome,  Wendell,  Gooding, 
Bliss,  Mountain  Home,  Pampa,  Boise,  Caldwell, 
Payette,  and  Weiser  —  all  in  Idaho. 

In  the  Burley  potato  contest  in  1910,  L.  A.  and  W. 
L.  Snyder  of  Twin  Falls,  Idaho,  won  the  first  prize  of 
$500.  The  production  on  one  acre  was  38,685 
pounds  gross  weight.  The  weight  of  culls  was  4,150 
pounds,  making  34,535  pounds,  or  575§  bushels,  of 


390  THE  POTATO 

marketable  potatoes.     The  variety  was  Dalmeny 
Challenge. 

Following  is  the  story  of  how  the  first  prize  po- 
tatoes were  grown,  as  told  by  the  growers: 


ce- 


lt will  be  necessary  to  give  a  brief  account  of 
our  previous  experience  and  observations  along 
this  line  in  order  to  impress  upon  the  farmer  the 
fact  that  he  can  do  equally  as  well  if  he  will  use  his 
powers  of  observation  and  a  little  study  along  with 
his  work. 

"We  partly  owe  our  success  to  attending  farm- 
ers' institutes  and  demonstration  trains,  and  mak- 
ing a  study  of  the  different  farmers'  bulletins  and 
articles  on  potato  culture  by  E.  H.  Grubb  and 
others.  We  do  not  mean  to  infer  that  we  followed 
any  set  rules,  but  whenever  we  read  an  article  we 
always  compared  it  with  our  methods  and  acted 
accordingly;  so  that  in  reading  this,  all  we  expect 
the  farmer  to  do  is  to  compare  it  with  his  con- 
ditions and  methods.  We  are  confident  that  our 
record  will  be  broken  within  a  year  or  two,  still  we 
are  pleased  to  be  the  first  to  prove  it  possible  on  our 
soils. 

"W^e  came  to  the  Twin  Falls  tract  in  the  fall  of 
1905  and  have  raised  a  few  potatoes  each  year 
since.  Our  first  experience  was  with  mixed  run- 
out seed,  and  it  kept  getting  w^orse  each  year.  We 
had  about  decided  to  quit  the  potato  business  when 
Mr.  Grubb  shipped  in  some  seed  from  his  farm  in 
Colorado  in  the  spring  of  1908.  In  this  car  were 
Red  and  White  Peachblow,  Dalmeny  Challenge, 
and  Dalmeny  Beauty  potatoes.  The  Peachblow 
had  been  grown  in  Colorado  for  years,  while  the 
Challenge  and  Beauty  were  imported  from  Scot- 
land two  years  previous  by  Mr.  Grubb.     We  sold 


THE  POTATO  391 

our  run-out  stock  at  70  cents  per  100  pounds  and 
bought  some  of  this  seed  at  $2.80  per  100;  and  can 
say  that  it  was  the  best  investment  we  ever  made 
in  the  potato  hne.  The  crops  raised  from  this  seed 
were  superior  in  quahty  and  yield;  still  the  yield 
w^as  far  from  what  was  claimed  for  them  in  Scot- 
land. In  the  fall  of  1909  we  had  one  patch  which 
yielded  430  bushels  per  acre.  This  crop  was  raised 
on  sagebrush  land,  which  had  been  cropped  twice, 
but  had  had  a  light  manuring. 

"By  this  time  we  were  curious  to  see  what  we 
could  do  on  alfalfa  land.  So  in  the  fall  of  1909  we 
'crowned'  four  acres  of  alfalfa  as  shallow  as  possi- 
ble, plowing  with  sharp  plows  to  cut  alfalfa  crowns. 
This  alfalfa  w^as  planted  in  the  spring  of  1906. 
The  first  two  years  (including  the  summer  of  1906) 
it  was  cut  for  hay,  the  next  year  it  was  pastured  by 
hogs,  about  ten  head  per  acre,  and  the  next  year 
it  was  again  cut  for  hay.  We  had  intended  to 
harrow  the  crowns  to  the  surface,  but  we  had  a 
wet  spell  and  a  freeze  immediately  after  and  as  a 
consequence  all  the  crowns  were  alive  next  spring. 

"When  the  Burley  prize  w^as  offered  last  spring 
(1910)  W'C  decided  to  enter  this  contest.  We  en- 
tered for  several  reasons.  In  the  first  place  there 
was  nothing  to  lose;  there  was  a  great  opportunity 
to  learn  by  comparing  our  methods  with  those  of 
the  winner;  and,  again,  there  was  a  chance  to  win. 
In  trying  to  decide  how  to  proceed  in  order  to  get 
the  best  results,  a  great  many  questions  confronted 
us,  as  for  instance:  How  much  manure  can  we 
apply  without  getting  scab.'^  How  close  can  we 
plant  without  sacrificing  the  size  of  the  potato  and 
the  yield .^  What  size  seed  will  give  the  best  re- 
sults.^ How  is  it  possible  to  get  a  perfect  stand? 
Realizing  that  the  practical  educational  value  of 


392  THE  POTATO 

the  contest  would  be  lost,  so  far  as  a  yield  crop  was 
concerned,  if  the  winner  did  all  the  work  by 
hand  on  a  single  acre,  we  decided  to  use  horses 
and  machinery  in  all  our  operations. 

"In  order  to  break  the  crust  which  had  formed 
over  the  field  during  the  winter  we  used  a  double- 
action  disk  harrow,  which  always  leaves  the  surface 
level,  being  a  marked  improvement  over  the  ordi- 
nary disk-harrow.  This  was  followed  with  a  drag 
harrow  and  was  harrowed  several  times  at  inter- 
vals of  one  week.  By  the  time  we  w^ere  ready  to 
plow  nearly  all  the  alfalfa  was  dead.  All  this  disk- 
ing and  harrowing  had  thoroughly  mixed  the 
manure  with  the  soil,  and  had  created  a  dust 
mulch  over  the  field.  Being  afraid  of  scab,  we  had 
only  applied  twelve  loads  of  manure  per  acre. 
This  was  put  on  in  the  spring  while  we  were  killing 
the  alfalfa.  Being  so  thoroughly  mixed  with  the 
soil  and  plowed  under  so  deep,  we  had  no  scab,  and 
could  have  apphed  more  and  still  have  been  safe 
so  far  as  scab  was  concerned.  Before  plowing  we 
corrugated  and  irrigated.  We  did  this  for  several 
reasons:  First,  to  help  get  a  better  stand;  second, 
to  carry  the  crop  as  long  as  possible  without  any 
further  irrigation,  as  we  have  found  that  the  longer 
the  plants  can  grow  and  develop  without  needing 
any  further  irrigation  the  better  the  results ;  third, 
to  cause  the  manure  to  rot  and  get  in  a  shape  that 
the  plants  could  use;  fourth,  to  supply  enough 
moisture  so  that  the  soil  would  pack  (not  bake) 
after  it  was  plowed.  It  is  always  better  to  irri- 
gate before  plowing,  as  the  plowing  replaces  the 
air  that  the  water  has  driven  out. 

"As  soon  as  the  ground  was  dry  enough  it  was 
plowed  from  ten  to  twelve  inches  deep.  As  the 
surface  soil  had   been  worked  many  times  before 


THE  POTATO  393 

plowing,  it  was  very  fine  and  made  a  perfect  C(3n- 
tact  with  the  bottom  of  the  furrow.  This  is  verv 
important  and  w^e  find  it  pays  to  disk  before  plow- 
ing for  any  crop.  After  plowing,  it  was  harrowed 
twice  in  order  to  pack  the  soil  and  create  a  dust 
mulch  on  top.  This  harrowing  was  very  beneficial, 
as  a  soil  which  is  comparatively  compact  with  a 
dust  mulch  on  top  will  hold  moisture  longer  than 
one  which  is  loose  clear  to  the  bottom  of  the  fur- 
row. 

"WTiile  we  were  preparing  the  soil  we  had  been 
getting  the  seed  ready.  The  seed  w^as  selected  true 
to  type,  and  as  near  the  same  size  as  possible.  We 
cut  the  seed  more  to  conform  with  the  needs  of  the 
planter  than  to  our  own  ideas.  Part  of  this  seed 
had  been  hill-selected.  We  found  that  the  planter 
planted  a  piece  about  the  size  of  a  hen's  egg  to  best 
advantage,  so  we  cut  our  seed  in  squares  about  that 
size.  In  cutting  a  potato  we  always  used  as  manj'^ 
cuts  from  the  seed  end  as  possible,  each  piece  hav- 
ing one  or  two  eyes.  The  seed  was  treated  with 
formaldehyde  as  per  directions. 

"As  we  had  decided  to  do  all  the  work  with 
horses  and  machinery,  w^e  w^ent  to  considerable 
expense  and  delay  to  get  a  planter  which  would 
plant  a  perfect  stand  in  preference  to  planting  by 
hand.  An  Iron  Age  Planter  was  used.  Acre  No.  1 
was  planted  from  four  to  five  inches  deep  with 
Dalmeny  Challenge,  the  rows  being  thirty-three 
inches  apart  and  the  sets  eight  inches  in  the  rows. 
Acre  No.  2  was  planted  the  same  distance,  with 
White  Peachblow.  Being  doubtful  as  to  results  of 
planting  eight  inches  in  rows,  we  planted  acre  No. 
3  with  Red  Peachblows,  the  same  as  acre  No.  1, 
except  that  the  sets  were  twelve  inches  apart. 
The  eight-inch  planting  required  1,750  pounds  of 


394  THE  POTATO 

cut  seed  per  acre  and  the  twelve-inch  planting 
1,250  pounds. 

"The  planting  was  commenced  May  21st.  The 
planter  was  set  to  ridge  the  hills  quite  high.  Im- 
mediately after  planting,  the  land  was  'packed' 
with  a  float  made  from  four  two-inch  planks  ten 
feet  long.  These  planks  are  nailed  together 
parallel  to  each  other,  overlapping  about  two 
inches.  This  float  runs  over  the  high  ridges  in 
the  same  direction  the  planter  ran,  presses  the 
dirt  around  the  set,  and  being  that  it  leaves  the 
surface  smooth  has  a  tendency  to  bring  the  mois- 
ture up  to  the  seed.  The  ground  should  be  har- 
rowed in  a  few  days,  or  too  much  moisture  will 
be  lost. 

"Acre  No.  1  yielded  645  bushels,  which  was  over 
100  bushels  more  than  No.  2,  and  was  of  a  superior 
quality,  showing  the  difference  in  variety.  Acre 
No.  2  yielded  more  than  No.  3,  which  would  indi- 
cate that  planting  eight  inches  in  the  row  was  bet- 
ter than  twelve  inches  on  this  particular  piece  of 
ground.  The  percentage  of  small  potatoes  was  no 
greater  in  the  eight-inch  planting  than  in  the 
twelve-inch  planting.  On  the  whole,  the  per- 
centage of  small  potatoes  was  less  than  in  the 
average  crop. 

"Too  much  cannot  be  said  of  the  importance  of 
a  good  stand.  It  costs  no  more  to  irrigate  and 
cultivate  a  perfect  stand,  and  the  line  between 
success  and  failure  often  depends  on  this  point. 
A  more  uniform  size  is  produced  with  a  perfect 
stand,  as  big,  over-sized  tubers  are  more  apt  to 
develop  where  they  have  too  much  room." 

Seed  potatoes  from  Mt.  Sopris  Farm  have  given 
good  results  in  Idaho.     Mr.  Alan  P.  Senior  of  Twin 


THE  POTATO  395 

Falls,  in  a  letter  to  H.  A.  Stroud,  recites  the  fol- 
lowing : 

"I  purchased  from  you  last  year  (1908)  some 
seed  Red  Peachblow  potatoes  that  you  secured  for 
me  from  Eugene  H.  Grubb  of  the  Mt.  Sopris 
Farm,  Carbondale,  Col.  I  planted  these  potatoes 
on  May  15th,  and  had  a  perfect  stand.  My  yield 
was  530  bushels  to  the  acre.  I  irrigated  twice,  the 
first  time  when  the  blossoms  were  on  and  the 
second  time  about  a  week  later.  I  believe  in 
thorough  cultivation,  and  went  over  my  potatoes 
five  times.  I  hilled  these  potatoes  up  just  as  high 
as  possible  to  get  the  ridges  with  the  cultivator,  and 
am  going  to  get  them  higher  next  year  by  the  use  of 
a  machine  that  will  throw  the  dirt  higher  than  a 
cultivator. 

"  I  also  planted  a  few  of  the  Dalmeny  Beauty  and 
Dalmeny  Challenge  potatoes,  and  liked  them  so  well 
that  I  intend  to  try  them  further  next  year. 

*'I  took  from  one  row,  1,100  feet  long,  of  Red 
Peachblows,  twenty  sacks  of  potatoes  that  ran 
over  100  pounds  to  the  sack  —  over  a  ton  of 
potatoes.     I  sold  these  potatoes  for  $27.40. 

"Any  one  can  raise  potatoes  in  this  country  — 
potatoes  of  the  highest  yield  and  finest  ciu;dity. 
It  is  only  a  question  of  intelligent  cultivation  and 
not  too  much  water. 

*'A11  of  my  potatoes  and  garden  produce  were 
grown  between  rows  of  young  apple  trees  that 
I  planted  three  years  ago  next  spring." 


CHAPTER  XXXIV 

THE   NORTHWEST 

IN  THIS  classification  we  have  arbitrarily 
grouped  the  states  of  Washington,  Oregon, 
and  Utah.  Idaho,  Colorado,  and  California 
are  considered  separately.  Conditions  in  Wyom- 
ing and  Montana  are  very  similar  to  those  in 
Colorado,  Utah,  Nevada,  and  Idaho. 

There  are  great  possibilities  for  enlargement  of 
the  industry  in  districts  in  the  states  covered  in 
this  chapter. 

UTAH 

Utah  has  a  comparatively  large  acreage  that  is 
admirably  adapted  to  the  growing  of  potatoes. 
Both  soil  and  climate  are  suited  to  the  crop. 
Prof.  L.  A.  Merrill,  agronomist  in  charge  of  arid 
farms  for  the  Experiment  Station  of  the  Utah 
Agricultural  College,  and  Director  of  Agricultural 
Extension  Work,  furnishes  the  following  infor- 
mation : 

*'The  average  date  of  planting  potatoes  in  this 
state  varies  from  May  1st  to  15th,  and  the  average 
date  of  harvesting  is  from  September  5  th  to  Oc- 
tober 1st,  making  the  length  of  the  growing  season 
about  four  and  one  half  months. 

"Potatoes  require  for  their  proper  development 
a  deep,  rich,  sandy  loam.  We  have  found  that 
they  do  not  thrive  on  a  heavy  clay  or  lumpy  soil, 

396 


THE  POTATO  397 

neither  do  they  do  well  on  a  rocky  soil.  We  have 
in  our  state  large  areas  of  the  very  best  type  of 
soil  for  the  production  of  potatoes.  In  1910  Utah 
produced  2,432,000  bushels  of  potatoes  on  16,000 
acres,  or  an  average  of  152  bushels  per  acre. 

*'Most  of  the  potatoes  in  the  state  are  grown  in 
the  following  counties  and  I  am  giving  them  in 
their  order  of  importance  as  potato-growing  sec- 
tions: Salt  Lake,  Utah,  Davis,  Sevier,  Weber, 
Morgan,  Cache,  Wasatch,  Emery,  San  Pete, 
Boxelder.  The  seed  is  mostly  home-grown  and  is 
as  a  rule  not  well  selected.  The  main  factor  con- 
tributing most  to  the  discouragement  of  the  potato 
growers  of  this  state  is  the  lack  of  good  seed.  In 
this  state  this  year  we  have  a  number  of  illustra- 
tions.  On  the  farm  of  Mr.  H.  J.  Cannon,  West 
Jordan,  Utah,  recently  I  observed  a  field  of  home- 
grown side  by  side  with  potatoes  grown  in  Colorado, 
and  it  was  certainly  an  object  lesson  favorable 
to  the  imported  seed. 

**The  following  varieties  are  grown:  Eureka, 
Six  Wrecks,  Early  Roast,  Early  Ohio,  Royal  Duch- 
ess, Dalmeny  Challenge,  Russett,  Peerless,  Free- 
man, Twentieth  Century,  Uncle  Sam,  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh,  Hammond,  Maggie  Murphy,  Peachblow, 
White  Pearl,  Majestic,  Farmer. 

"As  a  rule  the  ground  for  potatoes  is  prepared 
by  manuring  it  for  winter,  plowing  it  as  soon  as  the 
land  is  ready  in  the  spring,  harrowing  immediately 
after  the  plowing.  When  planting  time  comes  the 
land  is  marked  off  with  a  marker  and  a  furrow  is 
made  some  four  to  eight  inches  deep  with  a  shallow 
plow.  In  this  furrow  the  seed  is  dropped;  it  is  then 
covered  with  the  regular  plank  or  log  leveler,  and 
usually  two  harrowings  are  given  the  patch  before 
the  plant  appears  above  the  ground.     The  field  is 


398  THE  POTATO 

cultivated  three  or  four  times  after  the  plants  are 
up,  the  cultivation  being  done  with  a  regular  horse 
cultivator  and  with  a  small  shovel  plow.  They 
are  usually  irrigated  four  times.  During  the  first 
two  irrigations  which  are  given,  one  before  blos- 
soming and  one  just  after  blossoming  time,  the 
water  is  run  in  every  other  row,  the  second  time 
running  the  water  in  the  row  alternately  with  the 
rows  in  which  the  water  was  run  the  first  time. 
The  last  two  irrigations  are  given  as  the  plants 
show  need  of  water.  As  a  rule  twenty  acre  inches 
of  water  are  applied  during  the  season. 

*'In  harvesting  I  have  noted  that  those  who  are 
growing  early  potatoes  use  the  centre-draft  hand- 
plow  and  gather  by  hand  to  prevent  peeling  the 
thin-skinned  tubers.  In  many  localities  regular 
machines  for  digging  are  used,  and  wherever  used 
are  giving  entire  satisfaction. 

"Potatoes  are  stored  both  in  pits  and  cellars. 
Pits  are  made  by  digging  a  trench  four  feet  wide 
and  one  foot  deep  and  as  long  as  necessary.  The 
bottom  of  this  is  then  covered  with  four  inches  of 
straw.  The  potatoes  that  are  being  stored  are 
then  placed  in  the  pit  and  covered  with  about  six 
inches  of  straw,  about  six  inches  of  earth  is  then 
put  on  the  straw,  leaving  ventilation  holes  about 
every  eight  feet.  These  ventilation  holes  should 
have  an  extra  whisp  of  straw  in  them.  A  trench 
is  now  dug  around  the  pit  to  insure  good  drainage. 
Where  cellars  are  used  care  is  taken  that  they  shall 
be  particularly  well  ventilated. 

*'Utah  potatoes  last  year  were  shipped  to  Chey- 
enne, Wyo.;  Butte  and  Helena,  Mont.;  Denver  and 
Pueblo,  Col.;  Topeka,  Kan.;  Kansas  City,  Mo.* 
Austin,  Houston,  and  Galveston,  Texas;  San 
Francisco,    Sacramento,   and  Los   Angeles,    Cal.; 


THE  POTATO  399 

Portland,  Ore.;  Spokane,  Seattle,  and  Tacoma, 
Wash. 

"The  potato  fields  in  the  state  are  usually  small, 
ranging  from  one  acre  to  about  thirty.  The  aver- 
age size  field  is  about  five  acres.  Around  Smith- 
field  the  people  rotate,  planting  sugar-beets  one 
year  and  potatoes  the  next.  This  rotation  can  be 
practised  onl}^  when  the  ground  is  well  fertilized 
each  year.  In  many  places  potatoes  follow  a 
leguminous  crop,  generally  alfalfa;  others  have  po- 
tatoes follow  peas  or  beans,  and  still  others  have 
potatoes  follow  corn.  Potatoes  do  best  when  they 
follow  a  leguminous  crop. 

"Potatoes  should  receive  more  attention  from 
the  irrigation  farmers  of  the  state  than  they  do. 
My  opinion  is  that  the  potato  is  destined  to  become 
one  of  our  leading  crops  and  is  bound  to  take  its 
place  in  our  permanent  rotations  for  the  land  under 
the  irrigation  canals.  We  have  the  fertile  soil, 
good  climate,  moisture  control,  and  are  fairly  near 
to  good  markets,  so  that  with  the  good  quality 
which  our  properly  grown  potatoes  have,  the  in- 
dustry in  Utah  ought  to  grow  and  prosper. " 

WASHINGTON 

R.  W.  Thatcher,  Director  of  the  Agricultural 
Experiment  Station  of  the  State  College  of  Wash- 
ington, at  Pullman,  Wash.,  says  that  the  industry 
of  growing  potatoes  is  a  very  extensive  one  in  that 
state,  and  potatoes  are  grown  commercially  at  every 
elevation  from  below  sea  level  to  ncarlv  the  snow 
line;  and  with  every  variation  of  rainfall  from  so 
little  that  irrigation  is  necessary  up  to  120  inches 
annually;  and  on  almost  every  type  of  soil  known 
to  agriculture. 


400  THE  POTATO 

"The  peculiar  climatic  and  soil  conditions  of 
Washington  are  especially  favorable  for  the  pro- 
duction of  potatoes,"  writes  A.  G.  Craig,  Assistant 
Horticulturist  of  the  same  institution  in  'Bulletin 
11.' 

"In  many  large  sections  of  the  state  the  atmos- 
phere is  so  dry  during  the  summer  that  conditions 
are  very  unfavorable  for  the  growth  of  fungous 
diseases  on  the  foliage.  We  do  not  have  in  this 
state  the  Colorado  beetle  (potato  bug),  which  is  so 
destructive  a  pest  in  other  potato-growing  dis- 
tricts. There  is  little  danger  of  overstocking  the 
market  for  potatoes  here.  The  Eastern  demand 
for  Washington  grown  potatoes  is  good  and  has 
rarely  allowed  the  price  to  fall  below  $10  per  ton  in 
car  lots  in  the  past.  In  addition  to  this  there  is  a 
rapidly  increasing  market  for  our  potatoes  in 
Alaska.  There  is  no  crop  now  grown  in  Washing- 
ton which  shows  greater  variation  in  yield  per  acre 
than  the  potato.  This  is  largely  because  of  an 
erroneous  idea  that  the  potatoes  as  a  crop  do  not 
need  much  attention.  Many  farmers  give  time 
and  care  to  the  potato  crop  only  when  there  is 
nothing  else  to  be  done,  and  as  a  result  the  potato 
is  neglected.  This  crop  responds  to  good  treat- 
ment to  as  great  a  degree  as  any  other,  and  the 
grower  who  exercises  proper  care  with  his  potatoes 
is  always  repaid  in  the  yield  and  quality  of  his  crop. 

"There  are  thousands  of  acres  of  land  now  de- 
voted to  summer  fallow  which  might  produce 
good  crops  of  potatoes  with  very  httle  additional 
expense,  and  yet  leave  the  soil  in  better  condition 
for  wheat  than  it  is  under  the  present  methods  of 
summer  fallowing.  The  average  cost  of  producing 
potatoes  in  eastern  Washington  is  a  little  less  than 
five  dollars  per  ton.     The  plowing  and  harrowing 


THE  POTATO  40i| 

which  would  have  to  be  done  on  the  summer,  f^HtiW) 
land  if  potatoes  were  not  grown  is  included, in itb^. 
cost.  Therefore,  the  potatoes  grown  in  th^^.p|q,o0 
of  summer  fallow  can  be  sold  for  a  very  lo\y  pi^iCei 
and  still  leave  a  good  balance.  If  the  matk^t-. 
remains  as  high  as  it  has  been  for  many  years  ^,  Dil^tl 
profit  of  $15  to  $20  an  acre  from  what  w^ouldQ;thfirrt 
wise  be  idle  land  can  easily  be  secured.         ;  ',i|j  '\[ 

"A  deep,  friable,  mellow  loam,  rich  in  l^i^nwiSn 
is  the  ideal  soil  for  potatoes.  Heavier  soil$i'|liay 
give  good  results  if  well  manured  or  by  plp|vvii|g| 
under  a  clover  or  alfalfa  sod.  If  the  soil  h(^$,rai^l 
tendency  to  pack,  the  tubers  are  restricted  in.JI}|^f#j; 
growth  and  are  often  misshapen.  Supplying  jhu^^jUj^ I 
to  such  soils  not  only  remedies  this  difficulty,, Ip^j 
making  them  more  friable,  but  increases^/  thmV] 
water-holding  capacity,  thus  insuring  largeij  |y^f J[^} 
per  acre.  The  soil  should  always  be  put  in]  ^iQo4>, 
physical  condition,  as  potatoes  respond  very  f^-pflt?/ 
ably  to  good  soil  conditions.  Light  soils  q^n/J^j 
worked  earlier  in  the  spring  than  clay  soils  ai)fii^]^Qr 
favor  early  maturity  of  the  crop.  They  are,4tQri?rf 
fore,  better  for  early  potatoes.  Potatoes  $t4({>ji44i 
not  be  grown  repeatedly  on  the  same  soil,  ^q.;i?|io^t^! 
of  the  potato  diseases  live  over  in  the  soil.      ,,,''!  " 

*' Potato  land  should  be  plowed  in  the  f^lV^^r 
allowed  to  lie  rough  during  the  winter.  TJyis ,  [f)^7;^ 
vors  the  catching  of  winter  moisture  and  all9[s>^i^  ,ih^ , 
subsurface  soil  to  settle,  and  the  surface  (jap.,pq' 
worked  earlier  in  the  spring.  If  fall  plo\vir^g;  i^( 
impossible,  the  land  should  be  disked  in  the)faH,^i 
that  the  surface  may  be  rough  and  open  tj||^9|Ugj^j 
the  winter.  Deep  plowing  usually  gives  ilby^t-er 
results  than  shallow.  The  plowed  land  shq^|(jtli^) 
well  harrowed  early  in  the  spring  and  if  not  ^^i;]m^p4| 
diately  planted  it  should  be  frequently  harro\>]vii.Ha| 


402  THE  POTATO 

order  to  conserve  moisture  and  kill  the  weeds  which 
start  after  the  first  harrowing.  Spring  plowed 
land  should  be  harrowed  immediately  after  the 
plow,  to  prevent  loss  of  moisture.  In  the  drier 
sections,  some  form  of  subsurface  packer  should 
follow  the  plow,  and  this  should  be  immediately 
followed  by  the  harrow  to  work  up  a  surface  mulch. 
If  the  soil  plows  up  cloddy,  a  plank  clod  masher 
may  profitably  be  used. 

*'The  time  of  planting  should  be  governed 
largely  by  the  climate  and  the  purposes  for  which 
the  potatoes  are  grown.  The  potato  plant  needs 
ample  moisture  when  the  tubers  are  "setting," 
hence  the  grower  should  endeavor  to  have  the 
plants  reach  that  stage  of  development  at  the 
time  when  the  moisture  supply  is  likely  to  be 
favorable.  For  early  new  potatoes,  the  seed 
should  be  planted  as  early  in  the  spring  as  the  soil 
will  permit,  on  light,  warm  soil.  For  late  potatoes 
they  may  be  planted  as  late  as  the  middle  of  June, 
provided  the  moisture  supply  is  ample  and  con- 
tinuous, but  where  summer  rains  cannot  be  de- 
pended upon,  the  earlier  the  potatoes  are  planted 
the  better,  if  danger  from  frost  is  guarded  against. 

"Enormous  yields  of  potatoes  have  been  secured 
under  irrigation,  but  their  cultivation  is  attended 
with  some  difiiculty.  No  other  crop  is  so  much 
dependent  upon  the  skilful  use  of  artificial  water. 
The  quality  of  irrigated  potatoes  may,  or  may  not, 
be  as  good  as  that  of  those  grown  without  irriga- 
tion. Good  varieties,  if  well  grown,  will  be  good 
in  quality  either  with  or  without  irrigation. 

"Winter  irrigation  may  be  practised  very  suc- 
cessfully in  potato  growing.  The  fields  should  be 
flooded  before  plowing,  and  allowed  to  dry  to  a 
tillable  condition.     This  insures  perfect  condition 


THE  POTATO  403 

of  the  soil  for  working  and  for  the  early  growth  of 
the  potato  plants.  The  ordinary  methods  of  eul- 
tivation  may  then  be  followed,  without  further 
addition  of  water,  until  about  the  time  the  plants 
blossom.  At  this  stage  of  development  the  tubers 
are  set,  and  it  is  then  that  an  abundance  of  water 
is  needed  to  give  them  good  growth-  After  the 
water  is  once  applied  to  the  soil,  it  should  not  be 
allowed  to  become  dry  again  until  time  for  the 
crop  to  mature.  If  the  soil  is  allowed  to  become 
dry  at  any  time  after  the  first  apphcation  of  water 
and  a  subsequent  irrigation  is  given,  the  tubers  are 
sure  to  make  a  second  growth  and  become  knobby. 
Water  should  not  be  applied  too  late  m  the  season, 
or  the  potatoes  will  not  ripen  properly.  In  all 
applications  of  irrigation  water,  care  must  be  taken 
to  avoid  bringing  it  in  direct  contact  with  the 
growing  tubers,  as  under  such  conditions  the  ten- 
dency for  the  potatoes  to  become  scabby  is  in- 
creased. 

"If  winter  irrigation  is  not  practised,  the  first 
water  should  be  applied  immediately  after  the  seed 
is  planted.  Irrigated  potatoes  should  be  hilled, 
and  the  water  applied  between  the  rows.  In  ordi- 
nary soil,  water  applied  in  the  middle  of  rows  three 
feet  apart  satisfies  the  requirements  of  the  grow- 
ing potatoes.  The  cultivator  should  follow  each 
application  of  water. 

"'Sub-irrigated'  lands,  when  not  too  wet  or  too 
strong  with  alkali,  are  most  satisfactory  for  rais- 
ing potatoes.  There  are  some  localities  where  soils 
receive  just  enough  seepage  from  irrigation  ditches, 
or  other  water  supplies,  to  keep  in  moist,  friable 
condition  throughout  the  season.  These,  with 
frequent  shallow  cultivation,  produce  the  finest, 
smoothest  tubers,  with  the  least  trouble  and  ex- 


404  THE  POTATO 

pense.  To  produce  uniform  moisture  conditions 
in  the  soil  is  the  secret  of  successful  irrigation,  and 
this  is  the  absolutely  essential  condition  for  the 
most  profitable  potato  growing  under  irrigation." 

OREGON 

Oregon  has  earned  an  enviable  reputation  for 
quality  of  potatoes  produced,  and  Oregon  Bur- 
banks  are  very  popular  as  seed  tocks  in  California 
and  elsewhere. 

The  following  description  of  Oregon  conditions 
is  by  Prof.  H.  D.  Scudder,  Professor  of  Agronomy 
in  the  Oregon  Agricultural  College  at  Corvallis: 

*'The  length  of  our  growing  season  for  potatoes 
is  about  seven  months.  Potatoes  are  generally 
planted  the  first  two  weeks  in  April  and  harvest  is 
completed  during  the  month  of  October. 

"The  soils  most  commonly  used  for  the  potato 
crop  here  are  sandy  loams  along  the  river  bottoms 
and  silt  loams  on  the  valley  floor  and  on  the  hill- 
sides. Both  these  types  of  soil  produce  a  very  fine 
quality  of  potatoes  and,  where  properly  handled, 
nearly  the  same  yields,  the  sandy  loams,  of  course, 
maturing  the  potatoes  earlier  and  giving  a  larger 
yield  if  anything,  as  a  rule.  The  silt  loams,  on  the 
other  hand,  especially  on  the  red  hill  lands,  pro-, 
duce  a  very  fine  quality  of  potato. 

"The  chief  potato  district  in  the  state  is  the 
Willamette  Valley,  especially  at  its  lower  or  north- 
ern end.  The  Umpqua  Valley  and  the  Rogue 
River  Valley  also  are  potato-growing  districts,  al- 
though of  lesser  importance. 

"All  our  potato  seed  is  home-grown.  The  chief 
varieties  are  the  Burbank  and  American  Wonder, 


THE  POTATO  405 

which  are  grown  as  table  varieties,  and  the  Early 
Rose,  which  is  grown  as  a  seed  potato  and  shipped 
to  Cahfornia.  The  Garnet  and  Peerless  are  also 
growTi  to  a  lesser  extent  for  the  same  purpose  as  the 
Early  Rose. 

"The  preparation  of  the  land  here  generally  con- 
sists in  early  spring  plowing,  harrowing  and  disking, 
then  seeding  immediately  to  the  potatoes.  On  the 
smaller  fields  the  potatoes  are  generally  planted  by 
hand  and  covered  by  the  plow  or  with  the  hoe.  In 
all  the  fields  of  any  size,  how^ever,  the  planting  is 
done  with  a  planting  machine.  The  more  careless 
farmers  give  but  little  cultivation  to  the  potato 
crop,  sometimes  merely  harrowing  the  land  a 
couple  of  times  before  the  potatoes  are  up.  The 
more  successful  growlers,  however,  not  only  harrow 
the  potatoes  two  or  three  times  before  they  are  up, 
using  the  weeder  after  they  are  up,  but  then  use  a 
row  cultivator  two  or  three  times  to  complete  the 
cultivation.  Where  such  thorough  cultivation  Is 
given  the  most  excellent  results  are  obtained. 

"Irrigation  Is  not  required  at  all  for  potatoes  in 
western  Oregon.  They  are  never  irrigated  In  the 
Willamette  Valley  at  the  present  time,  although  in 
years  to  come  there  Is  no  doubt  that  the  yield  may 
be  slightly  increased  by  Irrigation  when  more 
intensive  farming  methods  require  the  highest 
yields  obtainable.  In  the  Rogue  River  Valley  the 
potatoes  are  sometimes  Irrigated,  but  this  Is  not 
the  common  practice.  Of  course.  In  eastern 
On^gon  wherever  potatoes  are  grown  on  a  commer- 
cial scale,  at  least,  Irrigation  is  used,  as  a  rule. 
Potatoes  in  eastern  Oregon,  however,  are  grown 
only,  as  a  rule,  In  amounts  sufficient  to  supply  the 
local  markets.  On  the  dry-farming  wheat  land 
in  eastern  Oregon  the  farmers  are   just  beginning 


406  THE  POTATO 

to  produce  potatoes  for  home  consumption,  and 
they  are  obtaining  very  fair  yields  of  very  high 
quahty  tubers.  In  fact,  potatoes,  grown  under 
dry-farming  conditions  in  eastern  Oregon  on  the 
silt  loams,  or  volcanic  ash  soils,  as  they  are  called, 
I  believe  to  be  the  finest  flavored  and  finest  quality 
that  I  have  ever  seen. 

"Potatoes  are  harvested  in  all  the  large  com- 
mercial fields  by  a  machine  digger,  in  the  smaller 
fields  by  hand  with  the  spade,  or  sometimes  merely 
by  plowing  them  up.  Those  potatoes  which  are 
stored  are  often  merely  dumped  in  bins  in  an 
ordinary  w^arehouse,  but  the  best  growers,  in  those 
cases  where  they  make  a  practice  of  storing  them, 
are  putting  up  specially  constructed  warehouses 
which  are  properly  insulated  w^ith  saw^dust  in  the 
w^alls  and  with  special  ventilation  to  keep  the  po- 
tatoes in  the  best  possible  shape  over  winter. 
Practically  no  protection  is  required  here  against 
freezing,  as  that  rarely  occurs  with  our  mild  cli- 
mate. What  protection  is  used  is  generally  merely 
to  maintain  equable  temperature  and  humiditj^ 

"The  Oregon  potato  crop  is  practically  all 
marketed  at  Portland,  Seattle,  and  San  Francisco, 
all  the  Early  Rose  and  other  varieties  raised  as  a 
seed  crop,  being  marketed  in  the  last  city. 

"The  cost  of  growing,  of  course,  varies  a  great 
deal,  but  under  good  methods  it  will  average  from 
twelve  to  fifteen  cents  per  bushel  in  the  bin,  this 
figure  including  interest  on  the  investment.  The 
profit,  where  the  potato  crop  is  grown  as  a  regular 
part  of  the  rotation,  will  average  $40  or  $50  per 
acre  net. 

"No  artificial  fertilizers  are  used,  the  only  fertil- 
izer of  any  kind  so  far  used  or  recommended  being 
a  cover  crop  of  vetch  and  rye  or  vetch  and  oats 


THE  POTATO  407 

sown  in  the  fall  and  plowed  under  when  twelve  or 
twenty  inches  high  early  in  the  8j)ring.  The  vetch, 
on  account  of  its  very  high  nitrogen  content  and 
nitrogen  gathering  ability,  makes,  of  course,  a 
wonderfully  good  covering  and  green  manuring 
crop. 

"The  size  of  the  farms  on  which  potatoes  are 
grown  in  Oregon  is  about  100  acres,  and  the 
potato  field  is  anywhere  from  five  to  sixty  acres 
in  size.  A  ten-acre  field  is  generally  considered 
a  pretty  good  size  field  of  potatoes,  and  forty 
or  fifty  acre  potato  fields  are  only  had  by  those 
growers  who  are  making  a  speciality  of  this 
product. 

"The  big  growers  are  beginning  to  use  system  in 
the  culture  and  marketing  of  this  crop,  as  well  as 
using  rotations  which  will  keep  the  ground  in  the 
best  condition.  One  of  our  best  growers  is  using 
that  old  and  everywhere  very  successful  rotation 
of  clover,  followed  by  potatoes,  followed  by  wheat, 
the  first  crop  of  clover  being  cut  and  left  on  the 
ground,  and  the  second  crop  harvested  for  seed,  the 
field  being  plowed  early  in  the  spring  for  potatoes. 
There  are  other  rotations  equally  as  good,  but  there 
are  no  special  ones  that  have  as  yet  been  widely 
adopted. 

"Altogether,  potato  growing  in  Oregon  is  a  very 
profitable  industry,  especially  so  where  modern 
methods  are  employed  and  rotations  are  used. 
Year  in  and  year  out  the  market  is  high  when  com- 
pared with  the  potato  market  elsewhere  and  as  yet 
no  such  thing  as  a  potato  disease  or  insect  pest  is 
known.  As  time  goes  on  I  think  this  crop  will  be 
more  widely  and  intensively  grown  and  one  which 
will  always  prove  excellent  for  including  in  rota- 
tions throughout  Oregon." 


408  THE  POTATO 

'lO  '>yf')  NEVADA 

})(iljii94  very  fine  book  on  Nevada,  published  by  the 
Hprneseekers'  Bureau  of  the  Sunset  Magazine,  San 
Jiriaiwigco,  CaL,  in  an  article  by  C.  A.  Norcross, 
Commissioner  of  Agriculture  of  Nevada,  it  is 
stated  that  the  potato  is  the  principal  export  of  the 
stfc|tei.Mi  The  Nevada  potato  has  taken  the  first 
;aw^d/  at  several  fairs,  international  expositions, 
b^d [produce  shows.  It  grows  evenly,  when  prop- 
^T^y! cultivated,  of  uniform  size,  clear  and  healthy 
4k\Xii  firm  texture,  free  from  disease,  is  not  watery, 
iftrt^  when  cooked  is  dry,  mealy,  and  white  as  a 
snowdrift.  It  is  no  mean  agricultural  art  to  get 
jljhei  I  biest  results  in  potato  growing.  It  requires 
^Ofp^rJence  and  intelligence  to  know  when  and  how 
'tKJipAant  the  crop,  how  deep  the  irrigation  furrows 
shewed  be  and  the  precise  quantity  of  water  re- 
K^iiired*  But  where  the  art  is  mastered,  the  profits 
Ironi/ potato  growing  one  year  with  another  are 
Vtryngreat.  The  average  yield  is  about  six  tons 
'tic>itjl^<e>acre,  or  200  bushels,  under  any  reasonably 
^killul:  handling,  but  the  leading  potato  growers  of 
the!  ist^te  grow  from  eight  to  fifteen  tons  per  acre. 
'JThlei  average  selling  price  is  about  $20  per  ton,  or 
60  cents  per  bushel.  A  net  profit  of  $200  per  acre 
^n  the  crop  is  not  unusual  in  seasons  of  good  prices. 
ii"r>bo(( 
.b')Hir  ' 
-ni()*>  [V 
}')■/  x,i;  ! 
A  lx')q 
')d  Hi// 
il')irl//  ' 


CHAPTER  XXXV 

CALIFORNIA 

CALIFORNIA  occupies  a  similar  position  on 
the  Pacific  coast  of  the  United  States  to 
that  of  the  territory  lying  between  Charles- 
ton and  Boston  on  the  Atlantic  coast.  There  are 
158,360  square  miles  or  101,350,400  acres  within 
its  borders.  A  large  part  of  this  is  mountain  or 
desert,  but  the  territory  is  so  great  that  the  total 
acreage  of  the  arable  valleys  w^ould  make  a  good- 
sized  eastern  state. 

The  great  interior  valley  in  which  the  Sacra- 
mento and  San  Joaquin  valleys  lie  is  about  420 
miles  long  and  has  an  average  width  of  forty-five 
miles. 

California's  greatest  agricultural  asset  is  its 
climate.  Throughout  southern  California  and  the 
Great  Central  Valley  the  growing  season  is  prac- 
tically^ twelve  months  long.  During  the  winter 
there  is  some  cold  weather,  but  the  thermometer 
rarely  registers  lower  than  freezing.  Pastures  pro- 
duce feed  in  the  winter  season,  although  less  lux- 
uriantly than  in  summer;  oranges  ripen,  and  all 
kinds  of  vegetables  make  satisfactory  growth. 

Potatoes  will  live  over  winter  in  the  ground  and 
make  a  volunteer  crop  the  next  season. 

Even  though  fruit  and  vegetable  growing,  dai- 
rying, and  other  lines  of  agriculture  are  highly 
developed  in  some  sections  of  the  state,  the  re- 
sources and  possibilities  for  agricultural  pursuit  are 

409 


410  THE  POTATO 

of  such  magnitude  that  they  can  be  said  to  have 
been  hardlv  touched. 

The  potato  industry  has  been  most  largely 
developed  in  the  vicinity  of  Stockton  in  the  San 
Joaquin  Valley,  and  in  the  Salinas  and  Lompoc 
valleys  along  the  coast.  The  crop  is  grown  every- 
where in  the  state,  but  not  in  a  large  commercial 
way,  except  in  the  places  mentioned. 

There  are  splendid  opportunities  for  developing 
an  early  potato  proposition  in  the  Sacramento 
Valley  and  elsewhere  throughout  the  state. 

The  first  potatoes  on  the  market  alw^ays  bring 
the  high  prices,  and  by  the  use  of  European  meth- 
ods of  storing  and  starting  seed,  the  crop  could  be 
sold  four  to  six  weeks  earlier  than  any  now  pro- 
duced. 

In  the  following  are  brief  descriptions  of  Cali- 
fornia conditions: 

THE   LOMPOC   VALLEY 

The  Lompoc  (little  hills)  Valley  is  a  very  nar- 
row strip  of  country  that  extends  up  from  the 
Pacific  Ocean.  The  mainland  juts  out  into  the 
ocean  somewhat  at  this  point,  so  that  the  climate  is 
tempered  by  the  ocean  both  from  the  front  and 
sides.  The  valley  is  about  nine  miles  long  and 
not  over  five  miles  wide  at  the  widest  part,  having 
a  total  area  of  something  less  than  15,000  acres. 
It  is  in  Santa  Barbara  County,  172  miles  north  of 
Los  Angeles  and  303  miles  south  of  San  Francisco. 
Lompoc  (1,500  population),  the  only  town  in  the 
vallev,  is  nine  miles  from  the  sea  on  a  branch  of 
the  Southern  Pacific  Railroad  connecting  with  the 
main  coast  line  at  Surf. 

All  of  the  land  in  the  valley  and  the  surrounding 


THE  POTATO  411 

foothills  was  originally  embraced  in  a  Mexican 
land  grant.  In  1874  this  was  bought  by  the  Loni- 
poc  Valley  Land  Company,  subdivided  and  the 
town  laid  out.  The  land  was  sold  in  compar- 
atively small  acreages,  principally  to  people  from 
Santa  Cruz  —  a  town  farther  north  on  the  coast. 
One  of  the  old  Franciscan  Missions  (La  Purissima) 
is  in  this  valley. 

The  Lompoc  Valley  is  surrounded  by  hills  200  to 
300  feet  high.  At  the  coast,  or  at  the  mouth  of  the 
valley,  the  elevation  is  forty-five  feet;  at  Lompoc, 
nine  miles  inland,  it  is  ninety-three  feet.  Because 
of  the  ocean  breezes  the  climate  is  cool  and  moist 
during  the  entire  year.  The  highest  average 
monthly  temperature  for  twelve  years  is  75  degrees 
(for  August),  and  the  lowest  44  degrees  (for  De- 
cember). The  average  annual  rainfall  is  eighteen 
inches,  practically  all  in  the  winter.  There  are  dry 
spells  some  years  when  irrigation  would  be  bene- 
ficial, but  good  cultivation,  in  connection  with  the 
cool  climate  and  sea  breezes  and  fogs,  is  generally 
sufiicient  to  mature  maximum  crops  Grains, 
potatoes  and  many  seed  crops  grow  to  perfection, 
because  there  is  no  excessively  hot  weather. 
Mustard  (German  and  English)  is  gro\\Ti  com- 
mercially, and  W.  Atlee  Burpee,  the  Philadelphia 
seedsman,  selected  this  as  ideal  for  growing  sweet- 
pea  and  other  seeds.  A  farm,  with  Edwin  Lons- 
dale in  charge,  has  been  started  by  this  concern  for 
growing  seeds  commercially. 

The  Pacific  Garden  of  July,  1910,  says  that  the 
summer  temperature  is  so  low  that  Lima  beans  do 
not  mature  seed.  A  temperature  of  85  degrees  is 
considered  very  high  and  20  degrees  very  low. 

The  district  is  one  of  small  farms,  forty  acres 
being  an  average  size.     L.  F.  Shanklin  is  one  of  the 


412  THE  POTATO 

largest  potato  growers,  and  he  considers  fifty  acres 
a  good  size  planting.  Many  growers  have  five 
to  twenty  acres. 

The  total  annual  acreage  of  potatoes  is  from 
4,000  to  6,000.  The  average  yield  is  75  to  100 
sacks  (150  to  200  bushels)  per  acre,  making  the 
production  about  50,000  sacks  (100,000  bushels), 
or  about  165  cars.  The  other  principal  crops  of 
the  valley,  those  with  which  the  potatoes  are  ro- 
tated, are: 

Mustard  seed  about  300,000  sacks  of  100  pounds  each 

Barley about     60,000  sacks  of  100  pounds  each 

Beans about  125,000  sacks  of  90  pounds  each 

Onions about     25,000  gacks 

There  are  places  in  the  valley  where  orchards 
have  been  taken  out  for  the  growing  of  potatoes 
and  other  field  crops,  even  though  with  proper  care 
orchards  pay  well.  In  other  places  the  Sugar 
Beet  Company  has  bought  land  devoted  to  beans, 
potatoes  and  onions,  for  growing  beets.  These 
things  show  nothing  but  some  of  the  inconsisten- 
cies of  American  agriculture.  It  is  certainly  not 
economically  right  that  an  apple  orchard  be  torn 
out  just  because  the  owner  does  not  like  to  "fuss" 
with  fruit,  or  because  he  has  changed  his  mind 
about  growing  apples. 

Lompoc  is  unique  in  that  potatoes  of  the 
very  highest  quality  are  grown  here  at  a  low 
altitude  and  a  southern  latitude.  The  moist, 
cool  atmosphere  and  the  sea  breezes  make  this 
possible. 

Potatoes  have  been  grown  at  Lompoc  ever  since 
the  first  settlement,  but  it  is  only  during  the  past 
five  or  six  years  that  modern  methods  have  been 
introduced.     Now  the  cultural  methods  are  strictly 


THE  POTATO  413 

up  to  date,  and  improvement  in  seed  work  is  com- 
ing very  rapidly. 

Like  almost  every  agricultural  section  in  the 
"West,  the  soils  are  spotted.  Here  they  range  from 
a  very  heavy  clay,  locally  called  "blue  mud,"  to 
pure  drift  sand.  In  tlic  grades  between  these  are 
the  fine,  well-aired,  well-drained,  fertile,  easy-work- 
ing sandy  loams  that  are  known  as  the  "potato 
lands. "  The  total  area  of  such  soils  is  not  over 
7,000  to  8,000  acres.  The  water  table  on  most  of 
this  best  potato  land  is  about  twelve  feet  below  the 
surface  of  the  ground. 

The  preparation  of  land  for  potatoes  is  most 
thorough,  three  important  factors  being  kept  in 
mind : 

'1)   Conservation  of  moisture. 

(2)  The  making  of  a  deep,  mellow  seed  nest. 

(3)  Killing  weeds. 

After  the  crop  is  off  the  land  in  the  fall,  a  heavy 
growth  of  volunteer  grain  and  weeds  starts  up. 
In  January,  when  this  is  one  to  two  feet  high,  it  is 
plowed  under,  generally  eight  to  twelve  inches  deep. 
After  this  the  ground  is  kept  thoroughly  w^orked 
and  free  from  weeds  until  May.  One  of  the  pop- 
ular tools  for  making  a  mulch  and  killing  weeds 
is  a  knife  weeder  and  cultivator,  consisting  of 
blades  attached  under  a  solid  frame.  It  is  a  local 
tool  patented  at  Ventura,  Cal.  The  cutaway  disk 
harrow  is  also  used  for  this  winter  working  of  the 
soil  for  killing  weeds  and  conserving  moisture. 
Another  local  tool  is  a  jointed  plank  drag  filled  with 
harrow  teeth. 

The  plowing  in  January  opens  up  the  soil, 
permitting  the  easy  absorption  of  the  largest 
possil)le  (juantities  of  winter  rainfall.  The  almost 
continuous  cultivation  following  this  breaks  the 


414  THE  POTATO 

capillary,  holding  the  moisture  in  the  subsoil,  and 
by  killing  the  weeds  keeps  them  from  sapping 
moisture  from  the  soil.  The  nettle  is  a  bad  weed 
for  this,  and  growers  state  that  wherever  this  weed 
is  allowed  to  grow  there  is  a  dry  spot  the  coming 
summer. 

About  May  10th  the  ground  is  plowed  again, 
this  time  ten  to  twelve  inches  deep.  After  this  the 
cultivation  is  continued  to  keep  weeds  down  and 
hold  moisture.  Potatoes  are  planted  May  20th  to 
June  20th.  The  Iron  Age  planter  with  a  heavy 
press  wheel  behind  is  now  quite  generally  used, 
although  until  the  last  four  or  five  years  the  work 
was  done  largely  by  hand.  The  rows  are  thirty - 
six  inches  apart  and  the  pieces  dropped  fifteen  to 
seventeen  inches  apart  in  the  row.  BurbaJik  ig 
the  only  variety  grown  in  the  valley,  and  the  best 
product  is  a  most  beautiful  potato,  absolutely 
clean  and  clear-skinned,  with  a  very  fine  netting 
that  indicates  a  mature  potato  of  excellent  quahty. 
The  best  growers  now  want  a  medium-sized  potato, 
with  shallow  "eyes"  and  square  shoulders,  a 
"spud"  that  nicely  fills  the  "fist"  of  a  good-sized 
man.  Some  extra  large  potatoes  are  grown,  and 
"Peerless"  (a  big,  rough  variety  here)  yields  up 
to  400  sacks  per  acre. 

The  seed  is  almost  entirely  imported  from 
Oregon.  Seed  is  generally  used  two  years  follow- 
ing the  introduction  before  another  change  is  made. 
The  theory  is  that  seed  from  a  cold  northern  cli- 
mate is  necessary,  but  L.  F.  Shanklin  believes  that 
the  greatest  cause  of  the  so-called  "running  out" 
of  seed  is  poor  selection.  The  practice  is  to  sell  all 
the  best  potatoes  and  select  seed  from  the  seconds 
and  culls  or  "cow  feed"  remaining  on  the  fann  in 
the  spring.     He  is  planning  to  select  his  seed  from 


THE  POTATO  415 

staked  and  selected  hills  that  produce  healthy 
tops  and  satisfactory  hills,  then  by  planting  whole 
seed  from  such  hills  he  expects  to  increase  yields 
rather  than  have  them  decrease. 

Seed  is  greened  with  sun  and  generally  cut  in 
very  small  pieces,  sometimes  to  one  eye,  about  600 
pounds  per  acre  being  the  average  amount  used. 
Because  of  this  the  stand  is  often  poor  and  all  of  the 
plants  do  not  always  start  as  strong  and  vigorous 
as  they  would  if  a  larger  seed  piece  furnished  more 
nourishment  for  the  starting  of  the  plant.  Mr. 
Shanklin  believes  the  yield  can  be  increased  30  to 
50  per  cent,  by  seed  selection  and  the  use  of  larger 
seed  with  the  same  good  cultivation  methods  now 
used.  From  one  hill  that  volunteered  from  a  whole 
tuber  he  dug  seventeen  big  potatoes. 

Lompoc  potatoes  are  grow^n  by  the  high  ridging 
system,  the  aim  being  to  get  as  high  and  big  a  ridge 
as  possible.  A  heavy  soil  mulch  is  kept  all  over 
this  ridge  and  there  are  heaA^  dews  and  fogs  almost 
daily.  This  moist,  open,  well-aired  ridge  is  an 
ideal  place  for  the  perfect  development  of  the 
tubers. 

The  ridging  begins  with  the  first  cultivation 
after  planting.  There  are  generally  two  culti- 
vations and  the  final  ridging.  This  is  done  with  a 
special  ridger  which  is  illustrated. 

Potatoes  are  harvested  in  November  with  horse- 
power diggers,  the  Douden  and  O.  K.  Champion 
being  generally  used.  A  long  apron  and  low  wheels 
on  the  digger  are  good  things  in  this  very  loose 
soil. 

Potatoes  are  stored  in  long  ricks  in  the  field  and 
in  big  warehouses  in  Lompoc.  The  climate  is  such 
that  when  piled  loose  in  big  ricks  twelve  feet  wide 
at  the  base,  six  feet  high  and  often  several  hundred 


416  THE  POTATO 

feet  long,  the  potatoes  keep  with  no  other  protection 
than  mustard  .straw  or  some  other  hght  covering 
that  simply  keeps  off  the  light  frosts.  It  must  not 
mat  or  shed  water,  or  it  will  mold.  These  piles 
are  soaked  through  repeatedly  with  the  rains  and 
no  damage  is  done  tliereby  to  the  potatoes.  They 
keep  all  right  until  well  into  the  spring;  if  piled 
east  and  west  instead  of  north  and  south,  some 
potatoes  on  the  north  side  always  frost. 

Ten  Japanese  laborers  will  pick  up  the  potatoes 
as  fast  as  one  digger  will  take  them  from  the  gTound, 
or  six  acres  per  day  of  eighty  sacks  per  acre.  The 
Japs  cost  $1.75  a  day,  or  $17.50  for  picking  up  480 
two-bushel  sacks  —  a  little  over  3  cents  a  sack. 
Potatoes  are  sacked  as  fast  as  dug,  but  the  sacks 
are  left  in  the  field  to  dry  out  for  a  day  before  being 
piled  in  the  ricks. 

A  large  part  of  the  crop  is  sold  to  brokers  at 
digging  time.  The  quality  of  the  Lompoc  and 
Salinas  potatoes  is  such  that  they  generally  bring 
$1  to  $1.50  per  hundred  as  they  come  from  the 
field.  The  crop  is  graded  into  firsts,  seconds,  and 
"cow  feed. "  The  firsts  are  smooth,  even,  medium- 
sized  potatoes,  the  pick  of  the  crop;  seconds  con- 
tain more  small  and  large  and  the  uneven  potatoes, 
but  are  all  sound;  "cow  feed"  includes  all  cut,  bad 
and  very  small  tubers. 

A  popular  rotation  of  crops  at  Lompoc  is  pota- 
toes, beans,  onions,  potatoes,  potatoes,  beans,  etc. 
The  soil  is  naturally  very  Tich,  all  recent  alluvial, 
and  there  are  frequent  overflows  from  the  streams 
depositing  silt.  For  tliis  reason  there  has  been 
practically  no  commercial  fertilizer  used.  Green 
manuring  with  legumes  is  not  done  (the  weather  is 
too  cool  for  affaffa  to  do  well),  and  animal  manures 
iire  not  used  to  any  extent.     In  fact,  there  is  very 


THE  POTATO  417 

little  stock  kept  in  the  valley  except  for  work.  Of 
course,  range  cattle  are  kept  in  the  hills.  It  is 
essential!}"  a  special  crop  valley,  but  some  day 
fertilization  will  be  given  more  attention. 

The  authors  are  indebted  to  T.  L.  Harris,  L.  F. 
Shanklin,  A.  G.  Balaam,  Secretary  Chamber  of 
Commerce,  and  others  for  valuable  information 
and  many  courtesies  shown  during  a  visit  to 
Lompoc. 

THE    SALINAS   VALLEY 

In  many  ways  the  Salinas  Valley  is  very  similar 
to  Lompoc.  It  is  on  the  coast,  between  Lompoc 
and  San  Francisco. 

The  maximum  temperature  is  about  91,  the  min- 
imum 28,  or  a  little  lower.  Citrus  fruits  are  not 
grown  commercially. 

The  principal  crops  are  potatoes,  sugar-beets, 
deciduous  fruits,  and  dairy  cow  feed. 

The  methods  of  cultivation  and  harvesting  are 
not  as  good  as  at  Lompoc. 

Seed  is  imported  from  Oregon  every  third  year 
by  many  growers.  The  seed  stock  is  best  the 
second  year,  or  that  following  its  introduction. 
The  Burbank  variety  is  grown  exclusively. 

The  potatoes  grown  at  Salinas  are  as  smooth  as 
eggs  —  average  from  four  to  twelve  ounces  in  size, 
and  have  a  beautiful,  clear,  netted  skin. 

The  best  soil  is  a  sort  of  sandv  loam,  verv  mellow 
and  easily  worked.  There  are  but  a  few  himdred 
acres  of  this  character,  however,  the  balance  being 
heavier. 

When  potatoes  are  not  grown  continuously  on 
the  land,  the  system  is,  grain,  potatoes,  sugar- 
beets.  No  fertilizing  is  done,  and  cover  crops  are 
not  used. 


418  THE  POTATO 

The  land  sells  for  $100  to  $500  an  acre  when  of- 
fered, but  there  is  practically  none  for  sale.  The 
entire  valley  was  originally  taken  up  by  Mexican 
land  grants  and  some  of  these  have  not  yet  been 
subdivided. 

The  seed  stock  is  stored  in  straw-covered  ricks, 
and  sprouted  once  or  twice  before  planting. 

The  land  is  plowed  twice  with  a  three-gang  disk 
plow,  ten  inches  deep;  harrowed  twice,  cultivated 
twice,  and  hoed  twice.  The  crop  is  dug  by  hand, 
Japanese  labor  being  used.  They  do  the  hand 
labor  for  30  per  cent,  of  the  crop. 

Growers  estimate  that  it  costs  $25  an  acre  to 
produce  the  crop.  Seed  cut  to  two  to  four  ounces 
is  used. 

The  crop  of  the  valley  is  about  25,000  sacks. 
The  yield  is  thirty -five  to  seventy  sacks,  of  100 
to  110  pounds  each,  to  the  acre. 

STOCKTON 

The  Stockton  district  is  now  one  of  the  biggest 
potato-producing  sections  in  the  world,  area  con- 
sidered. 

The  crops  are  grown  in  the  lowlands  in  and  along 
the  San  Joaquin  River,  in  a  rich  alluvial  soil,  some 
of  it  containing  a  large  percentage  of  decayed  vege- 
table matter. 

The  "  tule  "  lands  on  the  islands  in  the  San  Joa- 
quin river  are  made  up  of  the  decayed  vegeta- 
tion of  many  years,  and  being  subject  to  overflow, 
this  has  had  some  silt  incorporated  with  it.  In  re- 
claiming these  lands  they  are  surrounded  by  big 
levees.  Deep  drains  are  cut  through  the  land, 
with  shallower  drains  emptying  into  them.  These 
smaller  drains  are  about  40  feet  apart.     During 


THE  POTATO  419 

high  water  time  in  the  river  an  excess  of  water  on 
the  land  is  pumped  out  of  the  ditches  and  over  the 
levees  by  inunense  electrically  operated  j)umps. 
When  irrigation  is  needed  it  can  be  let  through 
the  dikes  or  the  same  pumps  can  be  used  to  pumi> 
water  from  the  river  back  into  the  ditches.  When 
the  ditches  are  filled  the  land  absorbs  the  moisture 
readily.  When  the  land  is  dry  there  is  danger 
from  fire,  and  this  is  very  hard  to  control  when  it 
gets  into  the  subsoil.  A  complete  fire  fighting  force 
is  maintained. 

The  potatoes  are  taken  to  railroad  shipping  points 
on  boats,  and  commission  men  and  dealers  re-sort 
before  selling  to  retailers. 

Disease  develops  rapidly  in  this  moist,  rich  soil. 
Careful  rotation  of  crops  and  perfect  control  of 
moisture  is  necessary  to  control  and  prevent  dis- 
eases. 

Practically  the  entire  crop  in  the  district  is 
grown  by  Japanese  and  Chinese,  Portuguese,  and 
Hindus.  Large  areas  are  rented  at  from  $12  to 
$30  per  acre,  and  sublet  in  smaller  lots  to  the  Japs 
or  Chinese  on  a  share  basis,  the  landlord  furnishing 
land,  implements,  and  seed  for  49  per  cent,  of  the 
crop. 

Seed  of  the  Burbank  variety  from  Oregon  is 
universally  used.  New  seed  is  secured  every  two 
years,  so  that  the  only  home-grown  seed  used  is 
that  produced  the  first  year  from  imported  stocks. 

The  planting  period  extends  from  January  loth 
to  July,  and  the  harvesting  is  continuous  from 
May  to  January. 

Eight  sacks  (about  100  pounds  to  the  sack)  of 
cut  seed  are  planted  per  acre,  and  the  yield  is  from 
80  to  150  sacks  per  acre. 

The   potatoes   are   planted   when   the   land   is 


420  THE  POTATO 

plowed,  the  seed  being  dropped  by  hand  in  e very- 
third  row. 

The  crop  is  irrigated  four  to  five  times  and  cul- 
tivated twice. 

The  digging  is  all  done  by  hand. 

The  men  are  paid  $50  per  month  and  board,  and 
they  work  eleven  hours  a  day. 

The  rotation  of  crops  practised  is  potatoes, 
then  barley  or  onions.  Potatoes  are  never  planted 
twice  in  succession  on  the  same  ground. 

The  Piatt  Commission  Company  of  Stockton 
handles  a  large  tonnage  of  potatoes.  Their  chief 
buj^er  is  a  Chinese  '*boy  "  who  has  been  with  them 
since  1878.  He  is  considered  the  most  competent 
buyer  in  California  and  draws  a  salary  commen- 
surate with  his  services. 

Potatoes  are  often  shipped  from  Stockton 
before  they  are  fully  ripe.  They  are  then  loaded 
in  double  decks  in  the  cars,  but  the  sacks  are  set  on 
end  instead  of  being  corded  up  lying  flat.  By 
loading  on  end  the  air  circulates  all  around  the 
sack.  The  crop  marketed  from  June  to  Septem- 
ber is  handled  in  this  way.  It  costs  $10  to  fit 
up  a  car  for  this  kind  of  shipping. 

Potatoes  known  as  *' leaky,'*  because  when 
bruised  by  rough  handling,  water  runs  out  of  them 
and  wets  the  sacks,  are  produced  in  the  delta  or 
tule  lands.  These  contain  an  excess  of  moisture 
because  they  make  a  rapid,  soft  growth.  These 
potatoes  often  turn  blue. 

The  excessive  growth  of  tops  that  these  po- 
tatoes make  in  the  field  indicates  a  soil  rich  in 
nitrogen,  but  deficient  perhaps  in  potash  and 
phosphoric  acid.  The  addition  of  the  two  elements 
last  nam.ed  might  increase  yields  and  earliness 
very  much  and  make  a  firmer,  better  table  potato. 


THE  POTATO  421 

Closer  planting  would  also  increase  yields,  as 
would  larger  seed  and  the  starting  of  seed,  as  in  the 
British  Isles. 

The  quality  of  the  tule  land  potatoes  could  also 
be  bettered  by  more  perfect  control  of  the  water 
table. 

The  potato  crop  in  San  Joaquin  County  (on 
which  Stockton  is  located)  was  valued  at  $2,145,000 
in  1910. 

A  good  deal  has  been  written  about  a  Japanese 
potato  king,  Shima,  but  at  Stockton  Sing  Kee,  a 
Chinaman,  is  accorded  that  honor.  He  grows 
from  3,000  to  4,000  acres  of  potatoes  every  year. 

In  the  following  by  Forrest  Crissey,  in  the 
Saturday  Evening  Post,  a  description  of  his  methods 
is  given : 

"  And  speaking  of  potatoes  —  there  is  Sing  Kee, 
the  real  potato  king  of  the  Stockton  District.  His 
bona-fide  Chinese  name  is  Chin  Lung,  but  he  is  Sing 
Kee  to  his  American  friends.  It  is  passing  strange 
that  the  publicit}^  men  of  the  railroads  and  big  land 
companies,  who  are  so  eager  to  prove  that  the  city 
business  farmer  is  a  success  w^hen  transplanted 
from  the  pavement  to  the  soil,  should  have  over- 
looked Sing  Kee,  of  San  Francisco  Chinatown. 
This  remarkable  Mongolian  first  slapped  his  san- 
dals on  the  pavements  of  San  Francisco  about 
thirty  years  ago.  He  slipped  quietly  into  the 
ranks  of  the  loose-frocked  toilers  and  plodded  along 
for  several  noiseless  years.  Then  there  was  a  store- 
opening  in  Chinatown  in  which  Sing  Kee  was  the 
central  figure.  He  had  saved  until  he  was  able 
to  promote  himself  into  the  merchant  class. 

"Sing  Kee  drove  a  good  trade  with  his  coun- 
trymen and  built  up  a  respectable  following  among 


422  THE  POTATO 

the  Chinese  farmers  and  gardeners  that  came  Into 
the  San  Francisco  market  with  their  truck.  Hav- 
ing the  same  inquisitive  tendencies  as  the  great  Li 
Hung  Chang,  he  pHed  his  farmer  friends  with 
questions  and  came  to  know  almost  as  much  about 
their  business  as  he  did  about  his  own.  One  year 
trade  in  Chinatown  was  depressingly  poor.  His 
thoughts  then  recurred  to  the  tales  of  farming 
profits  that  his  customers  had  brought  him,  and  he 
was  not  long  in  deciding  that  he  could  make  more 
money  on  the  soil  than  he  could  over  the  counter. 

*'Consequently  Sing  Kee  struck  out  for  the  soil 
and  carried  all  his  business  instincts  with  him.  He 
made  his  first  big  hit  in  1889  on  1,200  acres  in  po- 
tatoes. White  men  had  repeatedly  gone  broke  on 
this  very  tract  of  land,  owing  to  their  inability 
to  cope  with  the  overflow.  But  the  clever  Orien- 
tal watched  the  water  with  shrewd  eyes,  and  at 
just  the  right  moment  after  it  had  receded  he  put 
in  his  plows.  The  result  was  an  average  of  160 
sacks  to  the  acre.  At  the  outset  of  the  har^-est 
season  that  year  the  prevailing  price  of  spuds  was 
50  cents.  But  his  land  rental  was  cheap  —  only 
$7  an  acre  —  and  so  was  his  labor.  Even  at 
20  cents  there  was  a  fair  profit  in  the  enterprise. 
But  Sing  Kee,  the  merchant,  studied  the  market 
in  his  stoical  way  and  looked  far  ahead.  All  of 
his  experienced  field  neighbors  were  selling  their 
whole  crop  at  this  price,  but  the  buyers  could  get 
nothmg  more  out  of  Sing  Kee  than  a  shake  of  the 
head.  Prices  went  up  to  65  cents  and  from  that 
they  eventually  climbed  to  $1.65.  Between  these 
two  points  the  slant-eyed  Oriental  merchant- 
farmer  unloaded  his  bumper  crop  and  made  a  tre- 
mendous profit. 

"In  spite  of  the  fortune  that  he  realized  from 


THE  POTATO  423 

his  single  crop  of  potatoes,  Sing  Kee  is  too  shrewd 
a  farmer  to  put  all  of  his  eggs  into  one  basket,  al- 
though he  still  makes  spuds  his  main  crop.  An 
American  who  is  his  close  business  confidant  makes 
this  statement  of  Sing  Kee's  present  farming  opera- 
tions: He  has  four  thousand  acres  in  potatoes; 
100  acres  in  onions;  400  to  GOO  acres  in  beans;  560 
acres  in  asparagus;  and  300  to  400  acres  in  seeds. 
It  will  be  hard  to  beat  that  combination. 

"No  part  of  his  farming  operations  indicates  to 
the  uninitiated  the  skill  and  daring  of  Sing  Kee  as 
a  cropmaker  so  much  as  the  simple  fact  that  he 
has  200  to  400  acres  devoted  to  the  production  of 
seeds.  Seed-raising  may  be  said  to  be  the  su- 
preme test  of  farming  skill.  The  seed  for  this  part 
of  his  operations  is  sent  to  him  by  a  seed  house  the 
head  of  which  makes  this  statement  in  comparing 
the  average  American  farmer  with  the  alien,  and 
particularly  with  the  Oriental: 

*'*I  should  not  think  of  letting  a  seed  contract  to 
many  American  farmers.  Experience  has  taught 
me  that  failure  would  be  the  almost  certain  result. 
But  the  men  who  have  been  raised  in  the  Old 
World  traditions  of  intensive  cultivation  are  able 
to  qualify  in  this  highest  refinement  of  field  hus- 
bandry. I  wish  that  it  were  otherwise,  but  it 
isn't.  The  average  American  farmer  has  more  to 
learn  from  the  alien  farmers  of  every  race  now  rep- 
resented on  our  own  soil  than  he  can  possibly 
realize  or  appreciate.  The  first  step  toward  as- 
similating the  skill  and  the  knowledge  that  these 
alien  and  intensive  tillers  of  the  soil  have  brought 
to  his  door  is  a  realization  of  his  lack  of  their  mar- 
velous mastery  of  plant  life,  their  intimate  and  al- 
most intuitive  understanding  of  the  secrets  of 
plant  production.'      But  Sing  Kee  isn't  afraid  to 


424  THE  POTATO 

put  400  acres  into  the  growing  of  seeds;  and  the 
seed  house  is  not  afraid  to  back  this  shrewd  mer- 
chant-farmer in  so  extensive  and  difl&cult  an  under- 
taking." 

Following  is  an  article  from  the  Stockton  (CaL) 
Independent  of  August  26,  1911: 

**  Stockton,  though  known  to-day  throughout  the 
world  as  a  potato  centre,  is  destined  to  make  such 
strides  in  tuber  cultivation  as  to  make  the  delta 
regions  adjacent  to  this  city  universally  famed  as 
one  of  the  leading  spud  regions  of  the  world,  and  in 
many  distinctive  particulars  to  stand  out  in  a  class 
by  itself  in  points  of  merit  from  a  potato  stand- 
point. Such  was  the  general  statement  made  by 
Eugene  H.  Grubb,  of  Colorado. 

"While  in  this  section  in  search  of  information  as 
to  the  local  product,  Mr.  Grubb  has  been  the  guest 
of  P.  E.  Piatt  of  the  Piatt  Product  Company,  and 
yesterday  he  visited  the  delta  regions  and  selected 
samples  of  the  delta  tuber  from  the  Rindge  prop- 
erties. 

"Explaining  the  potato  of  this  section  and  the 
crop  condition  generally  Mr.  Grubb  stated  that 
the  one  outstanding  feature  as  compared  with  all 
the  world  that  signalized  the  Stockton  delta  re- 
gions was  the  fact  that  tubers  are  in  the  ground 
here  every  day  in  the  year,  and  that  shipments  are 
made  from  Stockton  covering  a  wide  area  365  days 
continuously  year  in  and  year  out. 

"The  continuous  crop  feature,  says  Mr.  Grubb, 
is  phenomenal  and  gives  Stockton  a  unique  dis- 
tinction throughout  the  world  in  the  potato  in- 
dustry. 

"Speaking  of  the  improved  cultivation  of  the 


TIIE  POTATO  425 

Stockton  tuber  as  compared  to  five  and  ten  years 
ago,  Mr.  Grubb  states  that  the  local  product  has 
gained  wonderfully  in  point  of  quality  and  that  its 
standard  to-day  is  of  the  highest  mark.  This,  he 
said,  was  due  to  the  fact  that  such  shippers  as 
Mr.  Piatt  have  come  to  learn  that  the  trade  de- 
mands the  best  obtainable  and  that  anything  less 
than  the  best  is  overcome  by  competition  and  to 
that  extent  unprofitable.  The  exact  conditions 
imposed  upon  the  shipper  by  the  trade  necessi- 
tates the  shipper  holding  the  grower  unrelentingly 
to  the  best  possible  qualities  obtainable  from  the 
soil. 

"Those  things  which  make  for  quality  have  been 
bounteously  provided  the  Stockton  delta  regions. 

"'Here,  he  pointed  out,  is  found  the  wonder- 
fully rich,  fertile,  light  peat  soil  so  peculiarly 
adapted  to  the  highest  cultivation  of  potatoes.  The 
sun  shines  from  a  growing  standpoint  every  day 
in  the  year,  the  climate  is  all  that  could  be  desired. 

"Discussing  the  local  tuber  from  a  distribution 
and  supply  phase,  Mr.  Grubb  called  attention  to 
the  fact  that  Stockton  to-day  is  shipping  practi- 
cally all  points  west  of  the  Missouri  River  and  only 
yesterday  shipped  two  cars  to  Kansas  City,  the 
very  centre  of  a  much  boasted  potato  area  long 
since  famed  among  the  tuber  fields  of  the  country. 
That  the  wonderful  breadth  and  scope  of  Stock- 
ton's supply  territory  might  be  better  emphasized 
the  visitor  directed  attention  to  the  fact  that 
the  Piatt  Produce  Company  alone  as  a  single  firm 
ships  out  of  Stockton  annually  more  than  one  half 
as  large  a  crop  as  the  noted  Greeley  district  of 
Colorado.  So  extensive,  says  Mr.  Grubb,  are  the 
fields  of  patronage  for  the  Stockton  product  that 
the  Easterner  cannot  grasp  the  immensity  of  it 


426  THE  POTATO 

all,  nor  appreciate  the  vast  population  fed  by  the 
delta  regions  adjacent  to  this  city. 

"Pointing  out  the  merit  features  of  the  local 
spud  the  distinguished  authority  on  the  tuber  says 
that  in  point  of  attractiveness,  size,  shape,  smooth- 
ness of  skin,  quality  and  all  that  goes  to  make  a 
potato  perfect,  the  delta  regions  produce  the  most 
nearly  perfect  tuber  known  throughout  the  world. 
Such  potatoes,  said  Mr.  Grubb,  could  not  pos- 
sibly be  grown  on  a  heavy  soil  nor  under  general 
conditions  less  ideal  than  characteristic  of  Stockton. 

"Taking  up  the  subject  of  distribution  and  sup- 
ply aside  from  the  quality  of  the  potato  itself  the 
visitor  pointed  out  that  this  section  invariably  has 
a  normal  crop  and  that  for  this  reason  the  trade 
throughout  the  area  covered  by  the  local  supply 
feels  that  it  can  always  depend  upon  Stockton  for 
receipts,  and  places  orders  here  deeming  it  the  most 
likely  of  satisfactory  deliveiy.  This  confidence 
of  the  trade  is  a  most  valuable  asset  and  goes  a 
long  way  in  establishing  Stockton's  high  standard 
of  reliability  as  a  potato  shipping  centre.  Added 
to  this  very"  important  feature  is  the  fact  that  the 
local  delta  regions  yield  early  and  at  such  seasons 
as  famine,  so  to  speak,  is  characteristic  of  other 
tuber  districts. 

"Of  the  many  variety  of  spuds  grown  in  this 
locality  the  visitor  observes  that  the  Burbank  is 
the  best  adapted  to  local  conditions,  and  in  this 
connection,  Mr.  Grubb  added,  that  no  section  of 
America  is  so  famed  for  its  Burbanks  as  are  the 
California  potato  fields. 

"From  the  standpoint  of  quantity  Mr.  Grubb 
says  that  Stockton  is  but  a  drop  in  the  bucket. 
Throughout  the  tuber  fields  of  America  there  are 
this  season  about  300,000,000  bushels.     All  CaH- 


THE  POTATO  427 

fornia  will  produce  but  8,000,000  bushels.  And  it 
is  estimated  that  the  local  delta  regions,  which 
have  an  acreage  planted  to  potatoes  amounting 
to  about  44,000  acres  will  yield  on  a  general  aver- 
age 100  sacks  to  the  acre.  This  in  dollars  and 
cents  will  represent  about  $5,000,000  for  the  total 
harvest  revenue. 

"After  returning  from  the  delta  regions  Mr. 
Grubb  met  a  number  of  the  business  and  pro- 
fessional men  of  this  city,  all  of  whom  heard  with 
delight  the  announcement  that  Stockton  will  be- 
come world  famous  in  a  greater  degree  than  at  this 
time  seems  at  all  probable  as  a  tuber  district." 

SACRAMENTO    VALLEY 

The  Sacramento  Valley  is  watered  and  has 
been  made  by  the  Sacramento  River  and  its  tribu- 
taries. It  is  a  vast,  alluvial  plain,  comprising  over 
2,500,000  acres  of  land. 

The  annual  rainfall  in  the  valley  is  about  eigh- 
teen inches,  and  it  comes  entirely  during  the  winter 
months. 

Without  irrigation  the  principal  crop  has  been 
grain  —  wheat  and  barley.  This  is  sow^n  in  the  fall, 
gets  the  benefit  of  the  winter  rains,  and  is  ripened 
in  early  summer.  From  June  until  the  rains  come 
in  October  the  country  is  dry  and  brown. 

With  irrigation,  every  crop  of  the  temperate  or 
semitropical  zones  can  be  grown. 

The  Sacramento  Valley  Irrigation  Project  of 
150,000  acres  is  the  most  important  undertaking 
in  the  valley.  Water  is  taken  from  the  Sacra- 
mento River  under  an  Act  of  Congress. 

There  are  wonderful  possibilities  for  early  potato 
growing  on  some  of  the  lands  in  this  valley. 

The  potato  being  a  cool  weather  crop,  in  hot 


428  THE  POTATO 

countries  it  is  grown  to  the  best  advantage  during 
the  cooler  parts  of  the  growing  season.  For  in- 
stance —  in  the  Sacramento  Valley  there  are  two 
growing  seasons  each  year:  Potatoes  planted  in 
February  or  early  in  March  are  dug  in  July  or 
August  and  those  planted  in  August  are  dug  late  in 
November.  Many  failures  are  recorded  when  the 
crop  is  planted  in  May  or  June  because  of  the  too 
intense  heat  of  atmosphere  and  soil  during  the 
period  that  the  tuber  should  be  forming  and  de- 
veloping. 

This  climatic  situation  makes  two  crops  of  po- 
tatoes possible  where  soil  conditions  are  right  and 
cultural  conditions  are  properly  managed. 

It  should  be  possible  to  make  early  potatoes  one 
of  the  largest  per  acre  revenue  yielding  crops  in 
the  valley  because  of  the  possibilities  of  getting 
the  crop  on  the  market  when  high  prices  prevail. 

The  potato-growing  business  is  a  very  profit- 
able one  nov\"  on  the  bottom  lands  along  the  Sacra- 
mento and  San  Joaquin  rivers  and  on  the  islands 
and  deltas. 

The  easiest  kind  of  soil  in  which  to  grow  po- 
tatoes is  a  sandy  loam,  or  one  well  filled  with 
humus  or  decayed  vegetable  matter. 

The  reason  for  this  is  that  such  a  soil  is  easies^ 
to  work;  it  does  not  bake  when  it  becomes  dry,  il 
takes  water  from  irrigation  in  sufficient  quantity 
but  does  not  water-log,  it  drains  readily,  and  is  a 
mellow,  friable  medium  in  which  the  tubers  can 
develop  symmetrically  and  quickly  without  too 
great  resistance 

In  order  to  grow  potatoes  on  heavy  clay  and  clay 
loam  soils,  in  which  the  percentage  of  sand  or  vege- 
table matter  is  very  small,  it  is  necessary  to  do 
such  preparatory  work  as  is  necessary  to  make 


THE  POTATO  429 

them  open  and  friable;  In  other  words,  to  better 
the  mechanical  condition. 

These  heavy  clay  loam  soils  are  among  the  rich- 
est known  in  agriculture.  This  is  because  they 
have  been  made  of  the  finer  particles  that  have 
been  washed  out  of  hills  and  mountains  over  a 
large  area.  The  valleys  in  which  such  soils  are 
usually  found  are  really  the  cream  of  an  entire 
watershed.  A  soil  that  is  easier  to  handle  may  be 
very  much  less  rich,  because  the  finer  soil  particles 
are  held  apart  by  coarse  sand  of  little  or  no  fer- 
tility, or  by  large  quantities  of  decayed  vegetable 
matter. 

For  this  reason  about  the  only  problem  con- 
nected with  potato  growing  on  the  heavier  lands 
in  the  Sacramento  Valley,  is  to  add  sufficient  vege- 
table matter  to  the  soil  to  hold  apart  the  fine  soil 
particles  and  make  it  more  loose,  open,  friable  and 
easily  worked. 

This  can  be  done  by  growing  alfalfa  for  several 
years,  filling  the  soil  and  subsoil  with  roots  and 
when  it  is  plowed  up  turn  under  a  big  crop  of  the 
green  alfalfa  to  further  add  to  the  vegetable  con- 
tent. 

Another  way  would  be  to  grow  and  turn  under 
successive  crops  of  peas,  vetch,  or  other  cover 
crops. 

The  addition  of  large  quantities  of  animal  ma- 
nures is  another  way  to  loosen  up  heavy  lands. 

In  Scotland,  one  large  potato  farmer  has  hauled 
sand  onto  heavy  clay  land  to  a  depth  of  five  inches, 
incorporating  this  and  large  quantities  of  stable 
manure   into   the   soil. 

On  a  small,  intensely  cultivated  farm  in  the 
Sacramento  Valley,  where  large  quantities  of 
animal  manures  are  returned  to  the  soil,  and  alfalfa 


430  THE  POTATO 

and  other  deep  rooted  crops  grown,  it  will  be  easy 
to  have  a  plot  in  fine  condition  for  growing  po- 
tatoes each  year. 

The  Burbank  is  the  most  popular  variety  of  the 
potato  in  California.  For  early  planting  it  would 
be  well  to  try  Bliss  Triumph  and  Early  Rose. 
New  early  varieties  should  be  experimented  with. 
Only  by  trial  can  the  most  profitable  varieties  be 
determined.  In  a  warm  climate  the  best  seed  is 
generally  that  imported  from  colder  or  high  alti- 
tude districts. 

Preparation  for  the  early  crop  of  potatoes 
should  begin  the  year  previous  to  that  in  which 
the  crop  is  grown.  If  stable  manure  is  to  be  ap- 
plied this  should  be  done  the  first  or  second  year 
prior  to  the  raising  of  the  crop.  The  presence  of 
too  much  manure  before  it  is  thoroughly  decom- 
posed or  rotted  makes  a  favorable  condition  for 
the  development  of  diseases,  like  scab. 

If  the  land  to  be  cropped  in  potatoes  has  been  in 
alfalfa,  it  is  a  good  plan  to  first  plow  it  shallow, 
with  a  sharp  plow,  to  cut  all  the  crowns,  then  plow 
it  ten  to  fourteen  inches  deep.  Land  for  early 
potatoes  should  be  fall  plowed. 

As  soon  as  the  ground  is  in  condition  in  the  early 
spring,  it  should  be  disked  and  harrowed,  to 
make  a  good  seed  bed  and  to  "warm  it  up"  as 
much  as  possible  in  preparation  for  the  seed  about 
to  be  planted. 

A  practice  not  now  followed,  but  one  that  could 
be  used  to  advantage,  would  be  to  plant  nothing 
but  whole  seed,  and  start  the  sprouts  in  a  green- 
house or  sheltered  spot,  so  that  there  is  a  sturdy 
sprout  developed  on  each  tuber  before  it  is  put  in 
the  ground.  This  will  advance  the  maturity  of 
the  crop  from  twenty  to  twenty -five  days. 


THE  POTATO  431 

The  furrows  may  be  opened  up  a  few  days  in 
advance  of  the  planting,  so  that  warm  soil  will 
surround  the  seed  when  it  is  dropped.  The  seed 
should  be  dropped  by  hand  and  carefully  covered 
with  a  shovel  plow  or  ridger. 

As  soon  as  the  first  crop  is  out  of  the  ground,  the 
ground  should  be  thoroughly  worked  in  prepara- 
tion for  the  second  crop,  if  another  crop  of  po- 
tatoes is  to  follow.  If  potatoes  are  to  follow^  grain 
or  some  other  crop  the  ground  should  be  deeply 
plowed  and  a  good  seed  bed  made.  The  ground 
is  warm  at  this  time,  so  that  no  sprouting  of  seed 
is  necessary  before  planting.  Seed  from  the  pre- 
ceding crop,  or  northern-grown  seed  that  has  been 
kept  dormant  in  storage  may  be  used. 

Cultivation  should  begin  soon  after  the  seed  is 
planted.  The  first  cultivation  should  be  deep, 
to  thoroughly  open  up  a  deep  root  nest  in  which 
the  tubers  are  to  form.  On  irrigated  land  the 
high  ridge  system  of  growing  potatoes  is  usually 
used,  because  it  makes  it  possible  for  the  po- 
tatoes to  develop  in  a  loose,  open,  w^ell-aired  soil, 
the  moisture  supply  coming  through  the  bottom 
of  a  fairly  deep  furrow  into  the  base  of  the  ridge 
and  being  drawn  up  by  capillarity. 

The  number  of  irrigations,  and  the  number  of 
cultivations,  must  be  determined  by  the  needs  of 
the  soil  and  the  growing  plant.  No  fixed  rule  can 
be  set,  because  conditions  may  change  daily. 
Irrigation  water  must  be  used  with  suiHcient  fre- 
quency to  furnish  all  the  moisture  the  crop  needs. 
Too  much  is  as  bad  or  worse  than  too  little.  A 
shortage  of  moisture  makes  a  short  crop.  Cul- 
tivation is  required  as  often  as  is  necessary  to  keep 
the  soil  open  and  mellow. 

In  the  Sacramento  \'alley  the  first  crop  starts 


432  THE  POTATO 

out  with  a  sufficiency  of  moisture  in  the  soil 
from  the  winter  rains.  Late  in  the  spring 
one  —  or  perhaps  two,  irrigations  might  be  re- 
quired while  the  potatoes  are  making  the  greatest 
growth.  After  the  tubers  are  full  size  they  are 
dug. 

After  the  first  crop  is  taken  from  the  ground 
(whether  this  be  potatoes,  another  root  crop,  or 
grain)  the  ground  should  be  thoroughly  irrigated 
before  a  seed  bed  is  made  in  which  to  plant  the 
second  crop  of  potatoes.  The  irrigation  of  the 
second  crop,  during  its  early  growth,  will  be  more 
important  than  the  early  irrigation  of  the  first 
crop,  because  the  weather  is  hot  and  plenty  of 
moisture  must  be  provided  for  greater  evapora- 
tion at  this  season.  Irrigation  of  the  second  crop 
must  be  discontinued  in  time  to  permit  the  ripen- 
ing of  the  tubers  in  dry  ground. 

The  moisture  supply  to  a  potato  crop  must  be 
constant.  If  the  ground  is  allowed  to  become  too 
dry,  the  tubers  begin  to  mature,  and  when  an- 
other supply  of  moisture  is  provided,  a  new  growth 
is  started,  making  little  wart-hke  growths  on  the 
already  formed  tubers. 

Practically  all  of  the  crop  in  the  Sacramento 
Valley  would  probably  be  sold  almost  direct  from 
the  field,  making  storage  unnecessary.  If  it  was 
desired  to  store  potatoes,  a  cool,  underground  eel- 
car,  or  a  regular  cold  storage  room,  should  be  pro- 
vided. Heat,  rather  than  cold,  is  the  factor  to 
guard  against  here. 

The  potato  crop  requires  deep,  thorough  prepa- 
ration and  cultivation  of  the  soil;  consequently, 
is  a  good  crop  in  a  rotation.  After  a  crop  of  po- 
tatoes has  been  grown  the  soil  is  in  fine  mellow 
condition  for  a  succeeding  crop,  for  in  addition  to 


THE  POTATO  433 

the  fine  mechanical  condition  produced,  much  fer- 
tihty  has  been  made  available. 

On  heavy  soil,  small  "patches"  of  potatoes  are 
sometimes  grown  under  straw,  or  some  similar 
material  used  as  a  mulch.  By  this  method  the 
seed  bed  is  prepared  (mellow  and  moist) ,  the  seed 
planted  very  close  to,  or  just  at  the  top  of,  the 
ground,  then  the  whole  area  is  covered  with  straw 
to  a  depth  of  six  to  ten  inches.  This  settles  down, 
the  plants  come  through  it,  and  the  tubers  develop 
beneath. 

When  planted  this  way  the  crop  is  not  touched 
from  the  time  the  straw  is  placed  until  the  tubers 
are  dug. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI 

THE    ISLAND    OF    CHILOE,    CHILE 

IN  THE  history  of  the  potato  there  are  occa- 
sional  references  to  Chiloe.     The  senior  au- 
thor and  Luther  Burbank  are  planning  to  go 
there  soon  to  study  conditions. 

The  following  information  has  been  secured 
through  the  kindness  of  Secretary  James  Wilson  of 
the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture,  and 
Alfred  A.  Winslow,  American  Consul,  Valparaiso, 
Chile. 

"It  is  generally  understood  here  that  the  Island 
of  Chiloe,  Chile,  is  the  home  of  the  potato  and  that 
it  was  found  there  by  Pedro  Valdivia's  expedition 
in  the  first  half  of  the  fifteenth  century,  where 
they  were  known  by  the  natives  as  Poni.  At  that 
time  potatoes  served  as  the  principal  food  of  the 
Indians,  who  cultivated  them  to  some  extent,  and 
where  they  are  still  cultivated  in  a  very  crude  way. 

"The  Chiloe  Archipelago  is  situated  off  the  west 
coast  of  Chile  between  42  and  46  degrees  south 
latitude,  and  is  composed  of  many  islands  of  which 
the  largest,  Chiloe,  is  about  100  miles  long  by  38 
miles  wide  and  covers  about  2,450  square  miles, 
with  a  population  of  about  40,500  persons,  mostly 
Indians  or  half-breeds. 

"  The  farms  vary  from  50  to  500  or  600  acres,  but 
the  island  is  covered  with  a  dense  forest,  save 
where  small  patches  have  been  cleared  for  cul- 

434 


THE  POTATO  435 

tivation,  scarcely  ever  exceeding  fifty  acres  in 
atea,  and  the  potato  patches  rarely  exceed  six  to 
eight  acres.  According  to  the  best  information 
I  have  been  able  to  get,  no  machinery  is  used  in 
the  cultivation  of  potatoes  further  than  a  very 
crude  plow  and  a  spade  or  hoe.  They  are  planted 
in  rows  at  irregular  distances  varying  from  eigh- 
teen inches  to  three  feet  apart.  On  the  larger 
farms  the  seed  is  generally  planted  by  dropping 
whole  potatoes  into  the  furrow  at  distances  of 
from  eighteen  to  twenty-four  inches,  and  covered 
by  dragging  a  split  log  over  the  surface  with  the 
face  down,  or  by  plowing  a  furrow  on  either  side 
of  the  row. 

"As  a  general  rule  they  are  cultivated  only  once, 
and  then  when  they  are  three  to  four  inches  high. 
The  weeds  are  cut  out  with  a  hoe  or  spade,  when 
they  are  left  to  take  care  of  themselves  until  it  is 
thought  best  to  dig  them,  which  may  be  at  any 
time  after  they  mature  until  the  following  spring. 

"There  are  many  varieties  of  potatoes  grown  in 
Chiloe,  although  no  special  attention  is  paid  to  this 
matter.  Each  farmer  may  have  his  own  variety, 
since  no  attention  is  paid  to  changing  seed,  for 
varieties  do  not  seem  to  run  out  as  at  home.  I 
am  told  that  the  same  variety  is  planted  on  the 
same  land  year  after  year,  by  father  and  son,  with- 
out deterioration.  No  special  attention  is  given 
to  the  selection  of  seed,  and  still  fine  potatoes  are 
grown  from  year  to  year. 

"In  general  the  potatoes  are  dug  by  turning  the 
row  over  with  a  plow  drawn  by  a  yoke  of  oxen, 
and  the  ground  poked  around  with  a  crooked 
stick.  Of  course  in  this  way  many  are  left  m  the 
ground,  but  this  makes  but  little  difference,  since 
they  are  very  prolific,  and  easily  raised. 


436  THE  POTATO 

"  No  special  attention  is  given  to  storing  potatoes 
in  that  country.  They  are  generally  stored  by  the 
producer  in  a  building  with  a  ground  floor  on  a 
level  with  the  surface  of  the  ground  quite  open  to 
the  air.     There  are  no  cellars  in  that  part  of  Chile. 

"There  is  no  way  of  ascertaining  the  yield  per 
acre,  the  cost  of  production,  nor  the  profit  per 
acre,  since  no  account  of  such  things  is  kept. 

"Potatoes  are  sold  in  Chiloe  Island  by  the  pro- 
ducer, both  to  the  consumer  and  the  dealer,  who 
may  be  a  grocer,  baker,  butcher,  generally  mer- 
chant —  in  fact,  almost  every  business  house  han- 
dles them." 


CHAPTER  XXXVII 

GREAT    BRITAIN 

AS  HAS  been  indicated  elsewhere,  the  senior 
A\  author  spent  the  season  of  1910  in  Europe 
studying  agriculture  in  general  and  potato 
methods  in  particular. 

In  the  various  countries  of  Europe  he  found  the 
best  growers  using  very  advanced  methods,  while 
as  in  this  country  the  average  grower  could  greatly 
improve  his  operations  to  his  own  benefit  and 
that  of  the  industry. 

In  the  ultimate  analysis  of  the  situation  the 
principles  which  are  responsible  for  the  high  j^ields 
are  simple.  They  are  the  essentials  of  good  farm- 
ing everywhere  in  the  world. 

The  fundamental  reasons  for  the  successes  of 
the  best  growlers  of  Europe  may  be  all  broadly 
classed  as  soil  culture,  but  may  be  classified  as 
follows : 

1.  Drainage  —  good,    careful,    effective    farm 
drainage. 

2.  The  keeping  of  livestock  and  the  use  of 
animal  manures. 

3.  The  use  of  fertilizers  of  all  forms  to  make 
crops  produce  to  the  limit  of  fertility. 

4.  Seed  selection,  breeding  and  adaptation. 

Preceding  a  description  of  impressions  of  British 
agriculture    and    potato    growing    by    the    senior 

437 


438  THE  POTATO 

author,  is  the  following  discussion  of  the  situation  in 
the  United  Kingdom  by  Walter  P.  Wright  and  Ed- 
ward J.  Castle,  taken  from  their  very  clever  book, 
"Pictorial  Practical  Potato  Growing,"  and  used 
with  their  permission  and  that  of  the  publishers, 
Cassell  &  Co.  of  London: 

"Ireland  has  always  taken  more  kindly  to  the 
potato  than  the  other  countries  of  the  United 
Kingdom,  and  she  still  boasts  a  larger  acreage 
devoted  to  this  crop  than  England,  Scotland,  and 
Wales  combined.  From  various  causes,  this 
acreage  has,  however,  been  steadily  decreasing 
for  some  fifteen  years,  the  decrease  being  chiefly 
accounted  for  by  the  emigration  of  potato  growers, 
and  changes  introduced  into  the  diet  of  the  in- 
habitants. Still,  in  1904,  Ireland  could  boast  of 
618,540  acres  devoted  to  potato  growling,  as 
against  570,209  acres  ow^ned  by  England,  Scotland, 
and  Wales.  These  figures  showed  a  decrease  for 
Ireland,  and  an  increase  for  the  rest  of  the  king- 
dom, an  increase  which  was  augmented  to  608,473 
acres  in  1905. 

"It  is  gratifying  to  know  that  efforts  are  being 
made  to  check  the  decrease  in  Ireland,  chiefly  by  the 
production  of  very  early  potatoes  for  the  EngUsh 
market,  and  of  others  suitable  for  seed  purposes. 
Experiments  in  growing  early  potatoes  on  a  small 
scale  were  made  in  Ireland  in  1901,  and  proved  so 
successful  that  each  succeeding  year  has  seen  an 
increase  in  this  direction.  The  climatic  conditions 
of  the  west  coast  of  Ireland  seem  exceptionally 
well  fitted  to  the  production  of  early  potatoes, 
and  there  are  not  wanting  experts  to  prophesy 
that  Ireland  may  yet  compete  successfully  with 
Jersey  and  St.  Malo. 


oc/ifu^Ai>  Ancus 


Ctt^ftMCL  ISLAM  03  I 


Map  showing  districts  in  Great  Hritjiiii  wlicre  tlirrc  arc 
prominent  poliilo  t'nruis 


THE  POTATO  439 

"In  the  growing  of  seed  potatoes,  Irish  pros- 
pects would  seem  to  be  particularly  rosy,  especially 
since  Mr.  J.  F.  Williamson,  of  Mallow,  has  demon- 
strated that  Irish  grown  seed  of  the  variety  Duch- 
ess of  Cornwall  gives  better  returns  than  similar 
seed  from  other  parts  of  the  kingdom.  Hitherto 
the  great  obstacle  to  the  development  of  the  Irish 
seed  potato  trade  has  been  the  dogged  pertinacity 
with  which  the  Irish  growers  adhere  to  their  own 
type  of  potato  —  a  type  which  finds  little  favor 
among  English  growers  or  consumers.  With  this 
obstacle  removed,  progress  may  well  be  expected  to 
be  rapid 

*'The  iyipe  of  potato,  finding  chief  favor  in  Ire- 
land is  rather  ungainly  in  shape,  and  possessed  of 
very  deep  eyes,  Champion  and  Black  Skerry  being 
two  of  the  most  popular  varieties.  Both  of  these 
cook  like  balls  of  flour,  and  are  very  white  in  the 
flesh,  and  flaky.  As  they  are  cooked  and  served 
in  their  skins  in  Ireland,  shape  and  appearance 
matter  little,  the  true  criterion  of  a  potato  being  its 
flavor.  In  England,  however,  where  potatoes  are 
generally  peeled  before  cooking,  shape  is  a  great 
consideration,  and  the  deep-eyed,  Irish  varieties 
have  to  yield  pride  of  place  to  well-shapen,  shal- 
low-eyed varieties. 

"England  is  easily  next  to  Ireland  in  the  matter 
of  potato  growing,  having  about  three  times  the 
area  of  land  devoted  to  potatoes  that  Scotland  has, 
and  more  than  fifteen  times  as  much  as  Wales. 
Moreover,  the  acreage  of  potatoes  in  England 
shows  a  steadv  increase,  it  having  been  402,725 
acres  in  1903,  402,760  acres  in  1904,  and  434,773 
acres  in  190.5.  The  average  yield  per  acre  is,  how- 
ever, slightly  less  in  England  than  in  Scotland, 
though  more  than  in  Ireland  and  Wales,  the  aver- 


440  THE  POTATO 

age  of  the  ten  years  1895-1904  being:  Scotland, 
5.90  tons;  England,  5.84  tons;  Wales,  5.36  tons, 
and  Ireland,  3.83  tons  per  acre  (a  ton  is  thirty- 
seven-and  one  half  bushels) . 

"The  bulk  of  English  potatoes  is  grown  in  the 
counties  of  Lincolnshire,  Yorkshire,  Lancashire, 
Cheshire,  and  Cambridgeshire.  In  1905  the  fol- 
lowing acreage  was  under  patatoes  in  the  respect- 
ive counties:  Lincoln,  79,564;  Yorks,  57,364; 
Lanes,  47,697;  Cheshire,  26,642;  and  Cambridge, 
26,039.  Lincolnshire  is  the  centre  of  the  English 
seed  potato  industry,  and  Lines  seed  potatoes 
have  a  reputation  second  only  to  the  best  Scottish. 
Cornwall,  which  has  only  an  area  of  4,822  acres 
devoted  to  potatoes,  has  generally  the  honor  of 
placing  the  earliest  English  grown  potatoes  on  the 
market.  These  follow  the  supply  from  the  Chan- 
nel Islands,  the  latter,  however,  being  preceded  by 
supplies  from  Malta  and  the  Canary  Islands.  The 
Maltese  potatoes  reach  our  shores  in  November, 
and  have  recently  become  so  popular  that  quite 
a  flourishing  trade  has  been  built  up. 

*'In  Scotland,  the  acreage  of  potatoes  has  rap- 
idly increased,  144,265  acres  being  required  for 
the  crop  of  1905,  while  137,735  acres  sufficed  for 
that  of  1904.  This  increase  is  mainly  attribu- 
table to  the  enormous  demand  for  Scottish  seed 
potatoes,  a  demand  created  largely  by  the  results 
of  experiments  conducted  by  scientists  to  deter- 
mine the  relative  value  of  seed  from  various  sources. 
But  Scottish  ware  potatoes  also  hold  their  own 
against  the  world,  the  famous  Dunbars  frequently 
being  quoted  at  20s.  ($4.80)  per  ton  above  all 
others.  These  tubers  possess  a  remarkably 
bright  and  taking  appearance,  combined  with 
high  cooking  quality,  for  which  the  peculiar  kind 


THE  POTATO  441 

of  soil    in    which    they    are    grown    is   deemed 
responsible." 

The  notes  which  follow  were  'UT'itten  by  the  senior 
author  as  he  visited  the  various  farms  mentioned : 

NEAR  EDINBURGH,   SCOTLAND 

Dalmeny  Farm,  Edinburgh,  Scotland,  is  one 
of  the  most  famous  livestock  and  plant  breeding 
institutions  in  the  world.  It  is  the  home  place  of 
of  the  Earl  of  Rosebery.  A  large  number  of 
specialists  are  employed  and  they  have  accom- 
plished wonderful  results  with  grains,  grasses, 
vegetables  and  livestock.  The  intricate  details 
of  breeding  have  been  carefully  worked  out  and 
the  products  of  the  farm  go  all  over  the  world. 

The  Earl  of  Rosebery  has  bred  and  raced  three 
Derby  winners  (thoroughbred  running  horses), 
and  a  great  many  famous  prize  winning  Clydes- 
dale horses,  Aberdeen-Angus  and  Shorthorn  cat- 
tle, large  Yorkshire  and  Berkshire  hogs  and  Shrop- 
shire sheep. 

In  the  potato  world  this  farm  is  famous  for 
having  produced  the  largest  yield  of  potatoes  ever 
recorded. 

The  place  is  visited  annually  by  many  dele- 
gations of  agriculturists  and  students  from  all  over 
the  world. 

Everything  is  made  to  pay.  The  Earl  instructs 
his  factor  or  manager  that  unless  he  makes  every 
branch  of  the  business  pay  he  will  be  replaced  by 
a  man  who  can. 

The  crop  rotation  on  the  potato  lands  is:  Po- 
tatoes, one  year;  grain,  one  year;  grass,  two  years. 
The  grass  consists  of  a  heavy  seeding  of  rye  grass 


442  THE  POTATO 

or  red  clover,  alone,  or  rye  grass  with  wheat,  oats, 
or  barley  as  a  nurse  crop.  I  saw  red  clover  seeded 
with  wheat.  The  grain  was  a  very  heavy  crop, 
(forty-eight  to  fifty-six  bushels)  and  the  red  clover 
was  thick  and  fully  eighteen  inches  high. 

The  rye  grass  meadows  are  fed  off  with  sheep. 
Cottonseed  and  linseed  cake  and  some  grain  are 
fed  in  addition.  Then  twenty  tons  of  well  rot- 
ted manure  are  spread  and  plowed  in  during  the 
winter  when  potatoes  are  to  be  grown  the  follow- 
ing year.  Potatoes  always  follow  grass.  This 
system  combined  with  the  northern  latitude,  has 
always  kept  the  potatoes  free  from  blight  and  dis- 
ease. Mr.  George  Sinclair,  the  farm  manager 
says:  "There  is  no  potato  disease  in  Scotland  if  the 
crop  is  grown  only  every  fourth  year,  and  on  turf 
or  sod  ground.  This  keeps  the  soil  open,  loose 
and  porous,  and  full  of  decayed  vegetable  matter." 
The  condition  of  the  soil  was  ideal  for  potatoes.  A 
special  artificial  fertilizer  mixture  that  has  been 
adapted  to  conditions  after  many  years  of  experi- 
menting by  their  soil  experts  and  specialists  is 
sown  at  the  time  of  planting  at  the  rate  of  six  to 
seven  hundred  povmds  per  acre. 

Whole  seed  is  always  used  and  increasing  the 
size  has  given  satisfactory  results  in  increased 
yields.  They  are  now  using  about  3,300  pounds 
of  seed  to  the  acre.  Formerly  2,000  pounds  was 
the  rate.  I  saw  as  much  as  5,000  pounds  per  acre 
planted  —  seed  up  to  three  inches  in  diameter. 

In  some  series  of  experiments  for  three  years  suc- 
cessively with  three  varieties,  3,500  to  4,500  pounds 
of  seed  to  the  acre  gave  an  average  of  seven  tons 
per  acre  greater  production  than  a  2,000-pound 
seeding. 

Late  varieties  are  planted  in  rows  twenty-seven 


Sir  MaLLliew  \\allace  —  kni'slitcd  l)y  (Jooriie  V  for  his  work  in  the 
interests  of  llu-  |)uUilo  induslry 


Potato  digging  in  Scotland 


A  potato  field  on  the  farm  of  Matthew  G.  Walhice,  Terregleston, 

Dumfries,  Scotland 


THE  POTATO  443 

inches  apart,  twelve  inches  apart  in  the  row. 
Early  varieties  are  planted  twenty  six  by  eight 
inches.  This  increases  the  number  of  hills  per 
acre,  consequently  the  yields. 

Deep  cultivation  is  practised.  George  Sinclair 
is  the  only  farmer  I  have  found  who  advocates 
extra  deep  stirring  of  the  soil  between  the  ridges  to 
keep  the  soil  loose,  open  and  porous. 

All  potatoes  for  seed  are  stored  in  pits.  He  ad- 
vises growing  as  large  a  crop  as  possible,  rather 
than  digging  green,  as  frost  always  cuts  off  the 
growth  sufficiently  early  to  secure  strong  growing, 
vigorous  seed.  There  is  no  special  boxing  or  storing 
in  cellar  or  houses.  Seed  is  never  cut,  no  matter 
how  high  the  price.  He  cannot  afford  to  w^eaken 
the  plants  by  dividing  the  tuber. 

Land  rents  for  $20  an  acre.  It  cost  $105  an 
acre  to  grow  600  to  G75  bushels  per  acre. 

Extra  large  seed  planted  whole  gives  best  re- 
sults for  growing  seed  stocks,  as  so  many  more  po- 
tatoes set  to  the  one  big  root  system,  they  are 
slower  in  growing,  more  miiform  in  size  and  of 
more  suitable  size. 

IN    WESTERN    SCOTLAND 

The  results  of  the  work  of  Matthew  G.  Wallace, 
Ter  regies  town,  Dumfries,  Scotland,  in  growing 
potatoes  are  very  remarkable.  He  is  a  tenant 
farmer,  and  has  been  growing  potatoes  on  a  300-acre 
farm  for  the  last  twenty  years.  In  January,  1911, 
he  was  knghted  by  King  George  for  his  services 
in  the  interest  of  the  potato  industry.  This  is  the 
first  time  in  history  that  a  man  has  received  such 
an  honor  for  such  service.  It  is  a  sign  of  the  in- 
creasing interest  in  agriculture. 


444  THE  POTATO 

The  soil  in  this  section  is  peculiarly  adapted  for 
growing  certain  varieties  of  potatoes.  It  is  a 
very  light  sandy  loam  and  is  naturally  well 
drained.  The  subsoil  is  of  sand  or  gravel,  and 
some  of  the  most  successful  crops  are  grown  where 
the  soil  is  not  more  than  eight  inches  deep. 

Mr.  Wallace's  whole  work  is  potato  production. 
His  conditions  are  such  that  he  has  grown  potatoes 
every  year  for  twenty  years  on  the  same  land,  and 
out  of  a  total  of  300  acres,  260  are  kept  in  potatoes. 
The  other  forty  acres  are  used  for  pasture  and  for 
growing  hay  and  grain  for  his  horses. 

On  the  260  acres  of  potatoes  he  uses  annually 
5,000  tons  of  barnyard  manure  costing  $7,500 
and  eighty  tons  of  commercial  fetilizer  costing 
$3,000.  He  compounds  the  latter  himself.  The 
manure  is  apphed  at  the  rate  of  twenty  tons  per 
acre. 

Mr.  Wallace  grows  only  two  varieties  of  po- 
tatoes: the  Sutton's  May  Queen  and  Sutton's 
Ninety -fold.  The  former  is  a  capricious  variety  ,• 
in  its  habits  and  nature  of  growth.  In  the  soils 
and  weather  conditions  to  which  it  is  adapted  it 
gives  maximum  yields  and  endures  from  year  to 
year.  This  fact  is  true  of  every  variety  of  potato 
of  which  I  have  any  knowledge,  but  it  is  a  phase 
of  the  subject  that  is  very  little  studied  by  potato 
growers.  One  of  the  strong  habits  of  the  May 
Queen,  which  grows  to  perfection  in  the  peculiar 
conditions  at  Dumfries,  is  that  it  grows  very 
rapidly  and  strong,  and  has  large  leaves  and  stocks. 
These  are  necessarily  tender  and  will  not  with- 
stand strong  winds,  which  would  whip  it,  weaken 
the  plant,  make  it  apt  to  blight,  and  check  the 
growth  of  the  tops  as  well  as  the  tubers.  This 
variety  is  not  a  favorite  on  the  coast  where  there 


THE  POTATO  445 

are  heavy  winds,  and  it  is  never  grown  there.  An 
adaptation  of  this  information  can  be  well  ap- 
plied in  districts  in  western  United  States,  on  open 
plateaus  where  there  are  strong  winds  during  the 
early  growing  season  of  June  and  July. 

The  May  Queen  is  one  of  the  very  best  early 
market  sorts  for  the  British  markets.  On  June 
first  I  saw  one  hundred  acres  that  was  a  beautiful 
sight  because  of  the  healthfulness,  vigor  and  bright 
green  foliage  of  the  plants.  Mr.  Wallace  begins 
to  harvest  early  in  July  and  the  entire  crop  is 
harvested  during  that  month. 

Potatoes  that  go  over  a  two  and  one  fourth  inch 
mesh  are  shipped  to  market,  those  between  two 
and  one  fourth  and  one  and  one  fourth  are  sold 
for  seed  or  kept  as  seed  stocks.  When  the  po- 
tatoes are  dug  they  are  practically  about  one  half 
to  three  fourths  grown.  They  are  planted  about 
March  25th  and  will  yield  about  eight  tons  when 
harvested  July  8th.  When  ripe  and  matured  they 
would  make  twelve  tons  over  a  one  and  one  half 
inch  mesh. 

After  being  cured  in  long  narrow  pits,  about 
three  feet  wide  and  thatched  with  straw,  they  are 
shipped  to  the  seed  houses  for  which  they  were 
grown. 

He  is  very  particular  to  keep  seed  true.  The 
same  variety  is  grown  year  after  year  in  the  same 
fields  so  that  any  potatoes  that  might  winter  over 
and  come  up  as  volunteers  the  next  year  would 
not  mix  with  those  planted  in  the  spring  following. 
He  is  so  careful  and  painstaking  that  each  storage 
house  is  labeled  w  ith  the  name  of  the  variety  and 
no  other  is  stored  in  it. 

Potatoes  are  harvested  in  July.  They  are  dug 
with  forks  and  picked  up  by  hand.     If  no  disease 


446  THE  POTATO 

which  they  spray  to  prevent  is  found,  the  vines 
are  spread  evenly  over  the  surface,  plowed  under, 
and  three  bushels  of  Italian  rye  grass  sown  to  the 
acre. 

Heretofore  he  has  imported  the  rye  grass  seed 
from  France-  It  is  stronger  than  the  English  or 
Irish  grown  seed  and  has  given  the  best  results,  but 
this  year  Mr.  Wallace  is  growing  his  own  seed.  He 
uses  an  immense  quantity  of  seed.  It  costs  $1.50 
a  bushel  or  $4.50  an  acre.  The  object  is  to  get  as 
large  an  amount  of  grass  as  early  as  possible,  and 
to  get  the  greatest  amount  of  fibrous  roots  and 
turf  to  plow  under  later  to  keep  up  the  humus  con- 
tent and  mechanical  condition  of  the  soil.  Rye 
grass  gives  more  roots  and  turf  in  a  shorter  season 
than  any  other  grass  they  have  used.  One  object 
of  sowing  it  immediately  after  the  potatoes  are 
harvested  is  to  pick  up  and  hold  any  or  all  of  the 
expensive  commercial  fertilizer  that  has  been  used 
in  growing  the  crop  of  potatoes.  Otherwise  it 
would  be  leached  into  the  subsoil  from  the  ex- 
cessive rains.  This  rye  grass  is  a  second  crop  for 
the  year  —  following  the  early  potatoes.  The 
grass  makes  a  fairly  heavy  crop  by  the  end  of  the 
growing  season. 

Manure  is  piled  up  and  rotted  until  it  is  almost 
like  black  putty,  then  it  is  hauled  out  and  applied 
to  the  rye  grass  crop  at  the  rate  of  twenty  tons  per 
acre  and  plowed  under  about  nine  inches  deep  in 
November  or  December.  It  has  the  winter's 
snow,  rain  and  freezing  to  decay  this  green  cover 
crop,  to  disintegrate  the  soil  and  make  splendid 
conditions  for  growing  potatoes  the  following 
spring. 

His  land  is  thoroughly  worked  in  the  spring,  and 
furrowed  out  in  long,  straight,  deep  furrows,  six 


THE  POTATO  447 

or  seven  inches  deep  and  twenty-seven  inches 
apart.  The  potatoes  are  dropped  by  hand  twelve 
inches  apart  and  covered  with  a  horse  plow.  This 
plow  has  a  special  form  for  splitting  the  ridge  and 
covering  two  rows  of  potatoes  at  the  same  time. 

I  consider  his  seed  work,  seed  storage,  and  hand- 
ling the  remarkable  part  of  his  system  and 
methods.  He  is  without  exception  using  par- 
tially grown  or  partiallj^  matured  seed.  The  po- 
tatoes that  are  lifted  in  July  are  kept  over  until 
the  next  March  for  planting.  He  claims  that  he 
gets  less  disease  than  when  lifted  at  maturity,  the 
potato  throws  out  a  less  number  of  sprouts  when 
planted,  it  makes  a  more  vigorous  growth,  and  the 
sprout  is  stronger.  Consequently  the  crop  ripens 
earlier. 

As  soon  as  cold  weather  approaches  in  October 
the  potatoes  are  taken  out  of  the  pits  and  stored  in 
trays  of  various  sizes.  These  are  from  fifteen  by 
twenty -four  inches  to  twenty  by  thirty  inches,  and 
about  three  inches  deep,  with  corner  posts  six 
inches  high,  so  that  it  makes  an  air  space  of  about 
three  inches  for  the  circulation  of  air  between  the 
layers  of  potatoes.  These  trays  are  corded  up  to 
the  ceiling  in  the  seed  potato  storage  buildings. 
These  buildings  are  enormously  large  and  eigh- 
teen and  twenty  feet  high.  They  are  made  frost- 
proof, with  a  large  part  of  the  roof  of  glass,  so  as 
to  give  an  abundance  of  light,  to  keep  the  potato 
from  developing  sprouts.  Then  when  they  want 
them  to  develop  sprouts,  the  rooms  are  darkened. 
When  one  or  two  white,  tender,  delicate  sprouts 
appear  at  the  seed  end,  these  potatoes  are 
taken  out  into  the  sun  and  weather.  This  must 
be  done  a  sufficient  time  before  planting  so  that 
the  sprouts  become  green  and  tough  to  withstand 


448  THE  POTATO 

the  handling  in  planting.  The  potatoes  in  the 
trays  are  hauled  into  the  field  and  dropped  by 
hand  by  women  and  boys.  This  method  hastens 
the  crop  fully  two  weeks  at  both  ends  of  the  growing 
season.  It  makes  it  possible  to  delay  planting  un- 
til the  soil  is  warm,  and  danger  of  rotting  in  cold 
soil  is  passed.  This  can  be  done  with  no  loss  in 
earliness.  The  seed  is  never  cut,  always  planted 
whole. 

Mr.  Wallace  uses  2,400  pounds  of  seed  to  the 
acre.  After  this  year  he  expects  to  use  larger 
seed  than  ever  before.  I  saw  on  this  farm  one 
twenty-acre  field  on  which  was  planted  five  thou- 
sand pounds  per  acre.  The  potatoes  used  were 
as  large  as  a  man's  hand.  This  large  seed  was 
used  this  year  because  the  market  price  of  com- 
mercial potatoes  was  very  low.  He  thinks  it 
will  make  more  net  money  than  any  acre  of  po- 
tatoes on  his  farm  this  year.  They  were  planted 
next  to  potatoes  where  the  ordinary  amount  and 
size  of  seed  was  used  with  the  same  soil  conditions 
and  culture.  The  result  in  the  growth  of  the  two 
crops  was  very  striking  and  in  favor  of  the  large 
sets.  The  tops  averaged  fully  40  per  cent, 
better  than  the  potatoes  from  the  ordinary  seed 
size,  and  the  yield  should  be  correspondmgly 
great. 

In  growing  early  potatoes  they  are  very  partic- 
ular never  to  disturb  or  break  the  first  sprouts  off, 
or,  as  some  say,  to  disturb  the  first  intention  of  the 
potato  to  reproduce  itself.  When  not  disturbed 
or  broken  only  one  or  two  sprouts  develop.  When 
it  is  desired  to  propagate  a  great  many  plants  from 
high  priced  seed,  the  potato  is  allowed  to  put  forth 
sprouts  about  one  half  inch  long  from  the  seed  end. 
Then  the  sprout  is  broken  off.     The  result  is  that 


THE  POTATO  449 

all  the  eyes  of  the  potato  develop  sprouts  of  equal 
vigor  and  vitality,  but  none  as  strong  as  the  first. 
When  only  the  first  develop,  the  other  eyes  of  the 
potato  remain  dormant.  When  the  potato  is  eut 
in  sections,  one  eye  to  a  piece,  the  seed  will  go 
much  farther  and  plant  a  great  many  more  acres, 
although  the  crop  will  be  less  in  yield  and  fifteen 
days  later  in  maturing. 

On  these  three  hundred  acres  Mr.  Wallace  pays 
about  $5,100  rent  and  about  $13,000  for  labor. 
On  this  farm  it  costs  $110  to  grow  an  acre  of  po- 
tatoes. The  annual  revenue  is  $175  making  a 
profit  of  ^65  per  acre. 

As  near  as  I  could  determine  in  going  with  him 
over  the  several  lots,  he  had  (1910)  an  average  of 
99.5  per  cent,  of  a  full  stand. 

He  pays  $4  to  $5  a  w  eek  and  house  rent  to  men 
with  families.  Foreman  and  men  handling  teams 
get  $5  to  $6  a  week. 

The  potatoes  are  picked  up  in  small  baskets  and 
dumped  on  a  screen,  which  is  placed  over  the  head 
of  a  barrel.  The  dirt  and  small  potatoes  go 
through;  the  others  are  put  in  other  barrels.  The 
top  is  covered  with  green  potato  tops  and  netting. 
All  early  potatoes  are  marketed  in  barrels,  the 
late  or  main  crop  potatoes  in  sacks. 

GIRVAN,  SCOTLAND 

Girvan  is  a  town  on  the  western  coast  of  Scot- 
land, on  the  Firth  of  Clyde.  It  is  the  birthplace 
of  Hon.  James  Wilson,  Secretary  of  Agriculture  of 
the  United  States. 

It  is  the  earliest  potato-growing  district  in 
northern  Great  Britain.  It  is  on  the  coast  where 
they  have  no  severe  late  spring  frosts,  because  of 


450  THE  POTATO 

the  protection  from  the  Gulf  Stream.  Potatoes 
are  planted  the  first  of  March  and  they  commence 
harvesting  in  June.  The  soil  is  a  wonderful  light, 
warm,  sandy  loam.  The  conditions  here  are  the 
best  I  have  seen  in  Europe  for  potato  production. 

There  are  five  thousand  acres  of  early  potatoes 
produced  annually  in  this  district.  They  are, 
without  exception,  of  one  variety,  Sutton's  Epi- 
cure. This  variety  clearly  fills  all  the  requisites 
of  the  climate  conditions  in  that  it  is  a  low,  sturdy 
grower  with  tough  leaves  and  vines.  There  are 
stiff  sea  breezes  and  violent  storms  that  come  from 
the  sea.  These  do  not  injure  or  damage  the  plant 
by  whipping  and  beating.  It  is  an  early,  strong 
grower,  the  tubers  form  early,  it  is  round  and 
white,  and  yields  well.  It  is  much  in  demand  in 
the  cities  throughout  Great  Britain. 

I  visited  Mr.  John  Hannah,  Girvan,  Mains,  the 
leading  and  largest  potato  grower  of  the  district. 
His  system  varies  little  from  that  of  Mr.  Wallace 
of  Terreglestown.  He  has  the  same  total  acreage 
of  300  acres,  and  has  continually  the  same  acreage 
in  potatoes  —  260  acres.  He  differs  from  Mr. 
Wallace  in  that  his  potatoes  are  all  sold  for  market 
in  June  and  July,  and  he  does  not  grow  and  save 
his  own  seed.  Every  year  Mr.  Hannah  buys  his 
seed  in  July  from  other  growers  in  the  district. 
By  selecting  his  seed  from  the  best  fields  and  crops 
there  is  apparently  no  disease  whatever,  so  far  as  I 
could  learn. 

His  potatoes  are  all  sold  to  dealers  in  the  dif- 
ferent cities.  The  same  merchants  come  back 
year  after  year  and  buy  the  same  fields  at  from 
$140  to  $175  an  acre.  The  merchants  lift  (dig) 
and  barrel  the  potatoes,  and  Mr.  Hannah  puts 
them  on  the  cars.     It  is  surely  a  novel  system  of 


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THE  POTATO  451 

harvesting  a  crop.  These  city  merchants  harvest 
the  crop  from  day  to  day  as  their  customers  in  the 
various  cities  require  them,  and  there  is  no  loss  in 
shipping  to  commission  brokers  by  overstocking 
and  breaking  the  market. 

I  had  a  very  dehghtful  time  with  Mr.  Hannah, 
going  over  his  work  and  discussing  methods.  He 
uses  hirger  sized  seed  than  Mr.  Wallace.  Mr. 
Hannah  plants  3,000  pounds  of  whole  seed  per 
acre,  and,  of  course,  insists  that  it  must  be  only 
partly  matured  when  dug.  It  was  very  interest- 
ing to  go  over  the  field,  seeing  in  nearly  every  hill 
examined  the  originally  planted  seed  potato  still 
clinging  to  the  roots  as  firm  and  sound  as  when 
planted  last  March.  I  did  not  see  a  single  col- 
ored leaf  or  a  dying  or  withered  leaf  in  a  field  of 
100  acres  (June  25,  1910). 

Mr.  Hannah  uses  seaweed  that  washes  up  on 
the  beach  for  fertilizing.  It  is  gathered  and  spread 
on  the  field  in  the  fall  at  the  rate  of  forty  tons  per 
acre.  On  the  balance  of  the  land  he  uses  twenty 
tons  of  well-rotted  barnyard  manure  annually. 
In  fifteen  years  he  has  increased  the  application 
of  commercial  fertilizer  from  some  GOO  or  700 
pounds  to  about  1,200  pounds  per  acre,  annuall3\ 
There  is  a  steady  increase  in  the  use  of  commercial 
fertilizer  to  keep  up  the  maximum  yields. 

He  had  commenced  harvesting  the  day  I  was 
there,  the  25th  of  June.  The  next  morning  the 
grass  seeder  was  out  ready  to  start  planting. 
He  used  three  bushels  of  French  grown  Italian 
rye  grass  seed  per  acre  and  then  I  think  a  little 
more  was  added  for  good  measure,  as  he  said  it 
cost  $5  per  acre.  His  200  acres  of  potatoes  will  be 
harvested  in  two  weeks'  time.  Instead  of  plow- 
ing the  rye  grass  cover  crop  under  as  at  Dumfries, 


452  THE  POTATO 

Mr.  Hannah  buys  3,000  head  of  sheep.  Ke  usually 
puts  in  forty  acres  of  rape,  although  he  can  grow 
rape  only  about  one  year  in  six  on  account  of  the  fin- 
ger and  toe  disease.  He  would  grow  more  rape  than 
Italian  rye  grass  if  it  were  not  on  account  of  this. 
These  3,000  sheep  are  started  grazing  about 
August  first.  They  cost  $8  a  head.  When  fin- 
ished for  market  they  are  slaughtered  on  the  farm 
and  the  dressed  carcasses  sent  to  the  London 
market.  Great  care  is  taken  that  all  the  offal 
from  the  sheep,  except  what  can  be  sold,  goes  into 
the  fertilizer  heap.  Not  even  the  blood  is  lost. 
Nothing  seems  to  go  to  waste  on  a  thrifty  Scotch- 
man's farm.  The  slaughtered  sheep  give  an  in- 
crease in  value  of  about  $1.75  per  head.  No 
grain  or  cake  is  fed  —  nothing  but  rape  and 
Italian  rye  grass  pasture.  These  sheep  are  pas- 
tured in  hurdled  lots.  They  are  slaughtered  once 
a  week  until  the  sheep  and  pasturage  are  all 
gone. 

When  the  grass  is  fed  off,  the  forty  tons  of  sea- 
weed or  twenty  tons  of  manure  are  spread  on  the 
stubble  and  plowed  under  in  the  late  fall  or  early 
winter. 

This  farm  has  been  growing  potatoes  with  this 
same  system  for  thirty  consecutive  years,  the 
son  succeeding  his  father,  and  Mr.  Hannah 
sees  no  change  in  the  yield.  This  is  the  most 
favorable  year  and  the  best  yield  he  has  ever 
produced.  He  sees  no  reason  if  this  farm  has 
grown  potatoes  for  100  years  why  it  should  not 
go  on  forever. 

The  cost  of  production  is  practically  the  same 
here  as  at  Mr.  W^allace's,  Dumfries  —  $110  per 
acre.  He  plows  about  the  same  depth,  nine  inches, 
and  has  the  same  system  of  boxing  and  sprouting. 


THE  POTATO  453 

With  his  pccuHar  conditions,  plowing  inicler  the 
cover  crop  has  given  no  better  resnlts  than  the 
growing  of  forage  crops  and  grazing  it  off  with 
sheep,  and  he  has  the  additional  projSt  of  $1.75  per 
head  for  the  sheep. 

In  this  northern  latitnde  he  is  getting  two  crops 
a  year,  one  of  potatoes,  a  cover  crop  of  forage,  and 
an  increased  value  in  fattening  a  flock  of  sheep. 
Surely  this  is  a  fine  example  of  intensified  farming, 
that  can  well  be  imitated  in  many  favored  dis- 
tricts of  the  United  States. 

While  I  was  there  a  little  incident  came  up  that 
is  well  worth  recording.  A  golf  club  wanted  Mr. 
Hannah  to  release  twenty-four  acres  of  his  lease- 
hold. He  had  nine  years  yet  to  run  on  his  nine- 
teen year  leasehold.  After  assuming  the  lease 
on  the  twenty-four  acres  for  the  nine  years,  and 
paying  the  annual  rental  to  the  owner  and  an 
additional  bonus  to  INIr.  Hannah  for  the  release, 
they  then  paid  him  $1,000  for  the  unexhausted 
manure  that  he  had  applied  on  the  twenty-four 
acres  after  removing  the  crop.  A  very  large  part 
of  this  land  had  been  tiled  to  three  feet  deep,  the 
lines  of  tile  being  fifteen  feet  apart. 

Another  piece  of  work  he  did  on  a  piece  of  heavy 
clay  land  was  to  cart  pure,  clean-washed  sand  and 
cover  ten  acres  five  inches  deep  with  it.  He  claims 
that  in  the  increased  production  and  the  ease  of 
cultivation  it  was  a  paying  investment  on  leased 
land.  This  is  a  good  illustration  of  the  great  value 
of  the  easv  working  lands  of  the  Twin  Falls  conn- 
trv  in  southeni  Idaho,  because  it  certainlv  cost  a 
considerable  sum  of  monev  to  have  this  land 
covered  five  inches  deep  with  sand.  Mr.  Hannah 
is  continuing  this  work  on  other  land. 

It  was   very   interesting  to  see  this   scientific, 


454  THE  POTATO 

practical,  money -making  potato  grower  doing  ex- 
perimental and  demonstration  plot  work  with  the 
various  combinations  of  fertilizer.  Barnyard  ma- 
nure had  been  applied  to  all  of  the  plots. 

The  use  of  1,200  pounds  of  commercial  fer- 
tilizer in  addition  to  barnyard  manure  gave  an 
additional  yield  of  seven  tons  per  acre,  at  an  ex- 
pense of  $22,  or  about  $3  per  ton  for  the  excess 
yield. 

Mr.  Hannah  is  a  contented,  satisfied,  tenant 
farmer.  He  has  made  a  great  success  in  special- 
ized potato  growing  for  the  early  markets,  on 
high  priced,  high  rate,  rented  lands.  He  is  prob- 
ably worth  over  $200,000,  and  is  living  a  life  of 
comfort  in  a  beautiful  home.  He  has  servants, 
beautifully  kept  lawns,  parks  and  gardens,  with  all 
kinds  of  fruits  and  flowers,  and  a  conservatory  for 
growing  hothouse  plants  and  fruits  out  of  season. 
This  is  agriculture  on  ideal  lines.  The  house  he 
lives  in  is  102  years  old. 

The  popular  opinion  in  America  is  that  it  Is  dis- 
graceful, undignified,  and  belittling  to  be  a  ten- 
ant farmer.  But  here  is  a  tenant  farmer  who  has 
acquired  a  quarter  of  a  million  dollars  as  a  potato 
grower,  but  he  is  a  specialist  and  he  specializes 
to  such  an  extent  that  he  has  more  leisure  for 
travel  and  pleasurable  recreation  than  merchants, 
mechanics,  or  professional  men,  or  any  well-to-do 
farmer  in  America  who  owns  his  land,  occupies, 
and  farms  it. 

These  tenant  farmers  are  paying  high  land  ren- 
tals and  for  expensive  fertilizers,  $5.60  a  ton  im- 
port duties  on  potatoes  into  the  United  States  and 
ocean  rates,  yet  they  can  successfully  compete 
with  the  American  farmer  with  all  his  Improved 
implements  and  cheap  lands. 


THE  POTATO  455 

IN   FORFARSHIRE,  SCOTLAND 

Thomas  Buttar,  Corston,  Coupar  Angus,  Scot- 
land, is  a  very  successful  breeder  of  Shropshire 
sheep  and  Shorthorn  cattle. 

Mr.  BuUar  grows  forty  acres  of  potatoes  for 
seed  annually  for  the  soutliern  England  trade  and 
sells  to  seed  dealers.  He  fertilizes  heavily  and 
grows  370  bushels  of  seed  stock  and  110  bushels 
of  large  potatoes  and  waste  per  acre.  He  plants 
large  sized  seed  whole.  This  gives  more  tubers 
per  hill  and  per  acre  and  they  are  smaller  and 
more  uniform  in  size.  It  is  another  corrobora- 
tion of  ^It.  Sopris  Farm  methods  and  results 
of  planting  perfect  large  tubers  for  growing  seed 
stocks. 

Corston  is  a  large  seed-growing  section.  I  met 
six  other  large  and  successful  growers.  Every 
one  feeds  livestock.  They  grow  a  very  large  ton- 
nage of  yellow  Aberdeen  turnips  and  Swedes, 
which  they  feed  with  oil  cake.  Each  and  every 
one  declares  they  could  not  farm  profitably  with- 
out grazing,  cake  feeding  for  making  muck,  and 
the  use  of  artificial  manures.  Their  main  re- 
liance is  cake  made  manures  and  crop  rotation, 
potatoes  one  year  in  three,  sometimes  two  years  in 
seven,  two  years  in  grass  for  hay  or  pasture, 
usually  hay  first  year  and  pasture  second,  then 
fall  plowing  after  a  coat  of  ten  or  twelve  tons  of 
well-rotted  muck  or  manure  has  been  applied. 
They  have  no  disease,  require  no  spraying  with 
this  system,  and  it  keeps  the  soil  health}^  and  free 
from  injurious  germs.  The  soil  is  in  splendid 
physical  condition,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that 
there  is  both  drought  and  excessive  rains.  It  is  in 
such  condition  that  it  holds  sufficient  moisture  for 


456  THE  POTATO 

plants  In  dry  times  and  drains  well  to  the  tiles  if 
there  is  excessive  moisture.  All  the  lands  are 
tiled  to  a  depth  of  thirty  inches  with  lines  of  tile 
twenty-four  to  thirty  feet. 

Mr.  Leybum  of  Kunochtry,  Coupar  Augus,  is 
another  successful  grower. 

He  feeds  his  land  like  his  bullocks,  giving  the  soil 
all  the  barnyard  muck  and  artificial  fertilizer  it 
can  use.  His  oats  and  barley  make  sixty-four  to 
eighty  bushels  per  acre  every  year  —  he  has  no 
bad  years.  He  feeds  no  grain  to  bullocks  or 
sheep,  just  roots,  chaff,  cake,  and  potatoes.  No 
small  potatoes  are  wasted  in  Scotland.  They  are 
fed  to  hogs  or  cattle. 

Mr.  Leyburn  grows  the  Epicure  for  early  mar- 
ket, and  follows  with  British  Queen  for  second 
early.  King  Edward,  Ever  Good,  and  Langworthy 
are  the  late  varieties.  Langworthy  is  not  a 
heavy  cropper,  but  of  such  quality  that  it  brings 
$5  more  a  ton  for  Its  table  quahty.  There  are 
300  acres  annually  in  potatoes  on  a  1,000-acre 
farm.  Mr.  Leyburn  Is  a  tenant  farmer  and  pays 
$13  an  acre  rent. 

I  am  sure  he  feeds  his  soil  all  It  can  utilize  from 
the  solid  look  of  the  tops.  I  could  not  tell  the 
direction  of  the  rows  without  going  into  the  field. 
When  a  hill  was  lifted  eight  to  fifteen  great  po- 
tatoes would  be  found.  They  were  not  nearly 
grown  and  would  continue  to  increase  in  size  for 
another  four  weeks. 

The  Epicure  is  his  favorite  for  early  market.  It 
is  not  of  as  good  quality  as  some,  but  is  a  strong 
grower  and  will  stand  dry  or  wet  weather  well.  It 
is  round,  of  even  size,  and  there  are  few  small  ones. 
They  were  planted  April  1st  and  harvested  July 
15th  to  August  1st.     The  British  Queen  is  two 


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THE  POTATO  457 

weeks  later  in  marketing.     I  believe  it  would  be 
a  desirable  type  for  the  United  States. 

Irish  women  and  girls  do  the  digging  wllli  forks. 
Eight  women  take  sixteen  rows.  Tliey  walk  Inick- 
ward  and  fork  them  out  deftly  and  other  women 
pick  them  up,  two  rows  at  a  time.  A  man  emp- 
ties them  into  barrels.  They  are  sorted  to  market 
size  and  refuse  as  picked  up.  The  land  is  left  as 
smooth  and  level  as  if  it  had  been  harrowed.  The 
tops  from  the  sixteen  rows  are  put  in  four  winrows. 
They  dig  and  pick  up  seventy-five  bushels  a  day 
at  a  cost  of  $1.20.  They  get  a  cabin,  firewood, 
and  what  potatoes  they  can  eat.  Women  work 
better  and  sort  better  than  men. 

AT  DUNFERMLINE,  SCOTLAND 

A.  Burns  and  Sons,  Dunfermline,  Scotland, 
farm  1,000  acres  and  crop  300  to  500  acres  in  po- 
tatoes annually. 

They  grow  one  variety  of  early  potatoes  ex- 
clusively, the  British  Queen.  This  outsells  all 
other  early  varieties  on  account  of  its  extra  fine 
table  qualities,  good  shape  and  medium  size.  It 
is  a  strong  grower  and  makes  large  yields.  The 
quality  is  corroborated  by  the  extra  gain  of  steers 
fed  on  the  waste  of  British  Queens  as  compared 
with  softer  varieties  witli  less  starch,  like  Epicure 
and  Up-to-Date.  Mr.  Burns  says  cattle  relish 
them  more,  consume  more,  and  they  give  25  per 
cent,  more  gain  on  the  British  Queen. 

Mr.  Burns  grows  and  saves  his  own  seed.  It  is 
screened  out  of  the  small  potatoes  when  they  are 
picked  up  by  the  harvesters.  All  the  refuse  is 
run  over  a  one  and  three  eighths  inch  screen. 
The  seed  potatoes  are  boxed  and  stored  in  seed  stor- 


458  THE  POTATO 

age  cellars  if  he  has  time;  otherwise  they  are 
stacked  up  outside.  They  wilt  and  green  in  the 
sun  and  air  and  get  quite  soft.  He  says  this  is 
not  advantageous  for  seed  vitality.  He  uses 
smaller  seed  than  most  growers  in  Great  Britain 
advise. 

He  sow^s  rye  grass  (two  bushels  per  acre)  and 
rape  seed  (twelve  pounds  per  acre)  as  soon  as  the 
potatoes  are  lifted.  He  grazes  this  off  with  sheep 
from  August  15th  to  December  15th.  He  feeds 
cake  to  the  stock  he  is  pasturing.  Cake  is  his 
great  reliance  for  keeping  up  soil  fertility.  He 
applies  twenty  tons  of  well-rotted  manure  in 
December  and  plows  under  as  deep  as  possible. 
He  has  grown  potatoes  successively  this  way  for 
fifteen  years.  Potatoes  are  sometimes  followed 
with  wheat  or  Swedes.  The  roots  get  the  same 
treatment  as  the  potatoes.  He  grows  thirty-five  to 
sixty -five  bushels  of  w^heat  per  acre  and  from  thir- 
ty-five to  forty-six  tons  of  Swedes.  There  is  noth- 
ing sold  off  the  farm  but  finished  cattle  and  sheep, 
potatoes  and  wheat.  All  roots,  straw,  rye  grass, 
hay,  oats,  and  small  potatoes  are  fed  in  covered 
sheds  for  making  muck.  No  fertilizer  is  used  the 
year  he  grows  wheat,  but  1,200  pounds  of  ground 
lime  is  plowed  in.     Lime  costs  $3.50  a  ton. 

He  uses  2,300  pounds  of  seed  potatoes  per  acre, 
planted  wdiole.  They  are  boxed  and  sprouted. 
All  potatoes  are  harvested  before  they  ripen  and 
are  sent  to  market  from  July  15th  to  August  15th. 
If  any  of  the  crop  is  matured  it  makes  600  bushels 
per  acre.  The  average  w4ien  marketed  unripe 
in  July  and  August  is  375  bushels. 

Mr.  Burns  uses  1,200  pounds  of  commercial 
fertilizer.  This  is  10  per  cent,  ammonia,  12  per 
cent,  potash,  25  per  cent,  phosphates.     The  secret 


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THE  POTATO  459 

of  his  success  in  fertilizing  is  in  getting  the  proper 
proportion  of  barnyard  muck  and  artificial  fer- 
tilizer. 

The  crop  is  cultivated  twice  and  hoed  once. 

The  head  lands  in  the  fields  are  not  planted,  so 
it  leaves  room  at  the  ends  of  rows  without  tram- 
pling the  crop. 

The  seed  is  stored  in  stone  buildings.  There  are 
windows  in  the  roof  and  sides  that  can  be  fully 
opened  and  there  are  large  doors  in  the  ends. 

The  potatoes  begin  to  throw  out  sprouts  about 
December.  He  keeps  these  from  developing  too 
rapidly  by  opening  doors  and  ventilators.  He 
says  the  sprouts  will  not  grow  if  there  is  a  cir- 
culation of  air  at  45  degrees  to  50  degrees  F. 
When  the  sprouts  are  one  and  one  half  inches  long 
he  checks  their  growth,  and  greens  and  toughens 
them  by  circulation  of  air  and  Hght.  One  of  the 
great  problems  of  early  potato  growing  is  to  hold 
back  the  development  of  the  sprouts  until  the 
time  of  the  planting.  Another  great  secret  im- 
parted by  Mr.  Burns  is  that  if  seed  potatoes  are 
boxed  at  once  and  put  into  storage  before  wither- 
ing or  greening,  and  if  only  partially  matured  when 
dug,  only  the  terminal  bud  or  eye  develops.  One 
sprout  gives  the  best  crop,  and  it  is  ten  days  or  more 
earlier.  There  is  no  disease  and  no  spraying.  He 
had  the  best  300  acres  of  wheat  I  have  seen,  except 
an  irrigated  crop.  It  was  as  heavy  as  would 
grow  without  lodging.  For  this  crop  he  used  from 
180  to  200  pounds  of  seed  per  acre,  and  it  will 
make  a  sixty-four-bushel  yield. 

He  has  Irish  help  for  harvesting —  100  of  them 
now(  at  time  of  visit).  It  costs  $11  an  acre  to  dig 
and  pick  up.  They  commence  work  at  4  a.  m. 
and  work  ten  hours. 


4G0  THE  POTATO 

He  feeds  400  bullocks  a  year  in  stone-wall 
stables,  under  cover,  bedded  every  day  with  straw 
and  peat  moss  to  hold  the  liquid  manure.  They 
are  fed  from  100  to  160  pounds  of  small  waste  po- 
tatoes and  ten  pounds  of  cottonseed  cake  per  day 
with  rye  grass,  hay  or  straw.  He  has  100  bullocks 
on  feed.  They  weigh  about  1,040  pounds  and  cost 
$100  each.  He  says  that  in  forty  days  they  will 
weigh  1,200  pounds  and  bring  $125.  He  never 
grazes  steers,  but  always  feeds  oil  cake,  potatoes, 
Swedes  and  roughage  in  close  pens.  He  values 
potatoes  at  $7.50  a  ton  for  feeding.  The  Tnanure 
of  cattle  fed  a  ration  rich  in  linseed  and  cotton- 
seed oil-cake  is  the  reliance  and  success  of  his 
potato  growing.  The  cake  and  bullock  manure 
with  the  liquid  manure  he  conserves  with  the  dry 
bedding  of  various  kinds  is  worth  $3  a  ton,  with 
city  horse  manure  at  $1.50  a  ton.  He  gets  one 
and  one  half  tons  of  manure  to  a  bullock. 

Without  muck  combined  with  artificial  fer- 
tilizer, potato  growing  would  be  an  absolute  fail- 
ure. The  advantage  of  growing  early  potatoes 
is  that  he  can  grow  a  crop  of  rye  grass  or  vetch, 
before  freezing  weather,  to  plow  under  for  green 
manure  or  graze  off  with  sheep  and  cake. 

Mr.  J.  Butterrs,  Dunfermline,  raises  only  main- 
crop  potatoes  (late  )  at  a  cost  of  $50.  He  grows 
and  selects  his  own  seed,  pits  it  and  plants  it 
whole,  using  from  2,500  to  3,000  pounds  of  seed 
to  the  acre. 

He  has  a  special  trade  direct  to  consumers,  and 
cannot  supply  the  demand  for  Langworthy  at  $20 
a  ton  (37.3  bushels)  because  of  the  table  excel- 
lence of  this  splendid  potato. 

He  gets  $150  an  acre  for  his  crop,  making  a 
profit  of  $100. 


THE  POTATO  461 

He  plants  27  by  9  inches.  I  did  not  see  a  weed 
on  the  farm.  He  has  grown  Langwortlij^  exchi- 
sively  for  eight  years,  and  selects  the  seed  per- 
sonally. No  rogueing  (going  through  field  and 
pulling  out  other  varieties)  is  necessary  here. 

IN   LINCOLNSHIRE,  ENGLAND 

Lincolnshire  is  one  of  the  largest  shires  or  coun- 
ties in  England.  It  vies  with  Yorkshire  in  its 
area  in  production  and  yields  of  agricultural  prod- 
ucts. The  lowlands  next  to  the  sea  are  known 
as  the  fens.  In  former  years  they  were  bogs  that 
were  affected  by  the  tides.  They  were  reclaimed 
by  the  Dutch.  Now  it  is  one  of  the  most  fertile 
lands  for  grazing,  growing  grains  and  potatoes. 
It  is  the  largest  potato  district  in  England. 

The  fens  are  drained  by  large  canals.  At  one 
time  the  drainage  water  was  pumped  out  by  wind- 
mills, but  now  steam  power  is  used.  The  water 
is  raised  ten  or  twelve  feet.  In  the  rainy  season 
the  expense  of  this  is  much  greater,  but  in  some 
seasons  they  pump  only  about  four  months,  just 
enough  to  hold  the  water  table  from  two  to  five 
feet  below  the  surface.  Some  of  this  land  has  no 
fall  whatever,  while  the  higher  lands  are  drained 
by  large  canals,  which  empty  into  the  sea.  These 
have  a  fall  of  about  four  feet  in  six  miles.  The 
canals  are  seventy  feet  wide,  from  ten  to  fifteen 
feet  deep,  and  from  three  to  five  mil(\s  aj^art. 

In  dry  seasons  the  drainage  canals  that  are  not 
affected  by  the  salt  water  tide  are  allowed  to  fill 
up  to  furnish  sub-irrigation  to  the  growing  crops. 
From  my  experience  in  England  with  the  cloudy 
weather  and  excessive  rainfall,  I  would  not  iliink 
there   would   be   any   necessity   for   sub-irrigation 


462  THE  POTATO 

once  in  a  thousand  years.  Nevertheless,  it  is 
used. 

The  black  fen  land  produces  enormous  crops  of 
grass,  grains,  roots,  potatoes,  and  the  most  won- 
drous crops  of  peas.  I  saw  from  forty  to  sixty 
acres  of  peas  in  a  lot  and  they  yield  forty  to  fifty 
JDushels  per  acre.  This  year  they  are  bringing  very 
high  prices  in  the  city  markets.  I  saw  250  women 
and  children  in  one  field  picking  the  pea  pods  and 
sacking  them  for  city  markets.  At  a  distance  they 
looked  like  a  great  flock  of  sheep  in  the  long  rows. 

These  lands  are  now  valued  at  from  $350  to 
$500  an  acre.  As  the  country  recedes  from  the 
sea  it  has  more  drainage  and  the  soil  is  more  of  a 
clay.  The  lands  are  tiled.  The  lines  of  tile  are 
from  ten  to  twenty  yards  apart  and  the  tiles  are 
laid  four  to  five  feet  deep.  The  original  cost  of 
the  canals  for  construction  was  75  cents  an  acre 
and  25  cents  an  acre  maintenance  every  four  or 
five  years  for  cleaning  and  pumping. 

Lincolnshire  is  noted  for  its  specialized  breed 
of  livestock.  In  a  week's  motoring  I  saw  nothing 
but  Lincolnshire  sheep  and  Lincoln  Red  Short- 
horn cattle.  They  are  all  cherry  red,  and  are  de- 
scended from  the  old  Shorthorn  stocks.  They  are 
larger  than  the  modem  Shorthorn  and  much  better 
milkers.  They  are  good  grazers.  I  was  very 
much  interested  in  the  weight  of  some  bullocks  1 
saw  grazing  in  a  pasture,  but  I  could  not  learn  of  a 
single  weigh  bridge  (scales)  in  the  whole  of  Lin- 
colnshire. I  saw  201  thirty-month-old  bullocks, 
all  cherry  red,  sold  to  a  butcher  by  one  firm  of 
farmers,  W.  D.  Dennis  and  Sons  of  Kirton.  It 
would  have  been  interesting  to  have  witnessed 
the  deal  made,  as  this  was  said  to  have  been  the 
largest  sale  of  bullocks  from  one  farm  at  one  time 


THE  POTxVTO  463 

in  Great  Britain.  First,  the  dealer  came  and 
looked  over  the  bunch  very  carefully,  then  he  was 
entertained  at  luncheon,  where  tliere  was  a  plenti- 
fid  flow  of  wine  and  spirit,  and  after  every  one  had 
been  put  in  the  best  of  feeling,  the  dickering  began. 
1  have  forgotten  just  where  they  started,  but  it 
fmished  £24.15.0  ($123)  per  head.  The  parties 
guessed  at  the  weight  these  bullocks  would  dress. 
When  200  were  counted  out  at  the  figure  one  more 
broke  in,  maldng  201  in  the  sale.  These  English 
farmers  are  willing  to  put  their  judgment  against 
the  butchers  who  are  slaughtering  and  weighing 
every  day.  These  buUocks  had  never  been  on  a 
weigh  scale  in  their  hves,  and  had  never  been  fed 
a  pound  of  grain.  They  were  largely  bred  and  reared 
on  the  farm,  and  were  mostly  from  pure-bred  Lin- 
colnshire cows,  200  of  which  are  kept.  Only  eiglit 
or  ten  bull  calves  are  kept  from  the  annual  calf 
crop  for  bulls,  and  rest  are  made  steers. 

I  had  been  so  inquisitive  in  their  other  farm  op- 
erations, especially  the  potatoes,  that  I  refrained 
from  asking  one  of  tlie  sons,  who  is  manager  of  the 
cattle  department,  what  one  of  the  bullocks 
cost.  It  had  been  reared  from  a  registered  cow, 
that  was  valued  at  $125,  and  was  pastured  and 
summered  on  land  that  had  a  valuation  of  $500 
an  acre.  I  wanted  to  know  the  cost  of  that  calf 
at  weaning  time,  figuring  the  interest  on  the  capi- 
tal invested  in  the  cow  and  the  land  she  grazed 
on  at  $625  a  year  and  including  the  service  of  the 
sire,  and  figuring  in  the  percentage  of  calves  per 
annum  to  100  cows.  I  simi)ly  remarked  that  I 
knew  of  no  American  farm  that  could  raise  steers 
at  a  profit  on  this  basis.  After  weaning,  the  calves 
were  wintered  on  straw  and  roots  with  a  bit  of  oil 
cake  —  a  j^ound  a  day.     The  next  sunmier  they 


464  THE  POTATO 

were  grazed  without  cake.  The  second  winter 
they  were  carried  on  straw,  clover  hay,  Swedes 
and  mangels,  and  four  and  one  half  pounds  of 
cake  a  day  until  sale  early  in  July.  They  were  a 
prime  lot  of  killers.  The  pastures  they  were 
grazed  on  were  drained  and  tiled.  There  is  no 
history  as  to  when  these  pastures  have  been  plowed. 
They  will  probably  be  kept  for  grazing  for  all 
time  to  come. 

It  would  be  a  great  problem  to  determine  just 
how  far  and  in  what  way  these  cattle  were  a  fac- 
tor in  the  profitable  agriculture  of  this  farm.  I 
am  positive  that  they  would  not  have  these  fabu- 
lous crops  were  these  cattle  not  raised,  as  they  are 
necessary  in  converting  the  world  of  straw  that  is 
fed  and  tramped  into  fertilizer  beds  of  manure 
every  winter.  They  are  just  as  careful  to  fertilize 
their  meadows  or  pastures  here  as  they  are  their 
plowed  fields.  All  the  manure  from  the  horse 
stables,  pigstys,  cow  stables,  poultry  houses,  and 
butcher  houses,  piles  of  weeds,  and  all  liquid  ma- 
nure is  hauled  into  the  feed  lots  and  conserved. 

The  Shire  is  the  exclusive  horse  of  this  district, 
as  is  the  white,  curly  coated  Lincolnshire  hog. 
The  Lincolnshire  sheep  are  also  peculiar  to  this 
district. 

Mr.  Wm.  Dennis  and  his  five  sons  are  pioneer 
growers  of  large  acreages  of  potatoes.  He  com- 
menced in  1869  by  buying  six  and  one  half  acres 
of  land  at  $500  an  acre.  They  now  have  3,000 
freehold  acres  and  lease  3,000  more.  They  are 
operating  6,000  acres  as  follows:  1,500  acres  in 
potatoes,  with  extra  early,  early,  second  early, 
medium  late,  and  main  crop  in  about  equal  pro- 
portions; 1,500  acres  in  grain,  and  3,000  acres  in 
pasture  for  grazing.     The  grass  and  grazing  land 


■A 

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THE  POTATO  465 

sells  for  more  than  plowed  or  arable  laud,  and  it  is 
quite  impossible  to  lease  it  for  the  purpose  of 
breaking  it  up.  They  run  six  1, '200-pound  bul- 
loeks  to  four  acres,  always  give  them  a  bit  of  oil 
cake,  and  never  graze  too  close. 

The  older  Mr.  Dennis  tells  me  that  their  suc- 
cess, prosperity,  and  accumulations  are  all  directly 
due  to  potato  grow^ing,  and  corroborates  the  state- 
ment that  I  have  made  continuously  whenever  I 
talk  potatoes,  that  potato  growing  when  given 
proper  attention  returns  more  revenue  for  capital 
and  labor  invested  than  any  other  crop. 

The  Lincolnshire  district  has  used  whole  seed 
potatoes  for  upward  of  forty  years,  and  their 
prosperity  is  largely  due  to  this  using  of  good, 
sound  whole  seed,  as  against  cutting  the  tubers  for 
seed  pieces. 

Dennis  and  Sons  are  also  the  pioneers  in  the 
most  successful  methods  of  storing  their  seed  po- 
tatoes. They  use  glass  storehouses,  and  have 
five  on  their  farms.  They  are  IGO  x  24  feet  and 
the  walls  are  twelve  feet  high.  The  lower  six  feet 
of  wall  is  of  brick,  and  the  upper  six  of  glass.  The 
roof  is  all  glass.  They  give  the  appearance  of 
conservatories  or  greenhouses.  They  cost  $2,250 
each  and  store  200  tons  of  seed  potatoes  in  crates, 
giving  a  total  storage  capacity  of  1,000  tons 
annually.  The  balance  of  their  seed  stocks  is 
shipped  from  the  north  of  Scotland.  They  are 
large  importers  of  seed. 

Sir.  Dennis  says  that  no  matter  how  perfect 
every  condition  of  potato  work  is  made,  if  seed 
stock  is  not  perfect,  of  high  germinating  power, 
free  from  disease,  and  planted  uncut,  the  grower 
will  lose. 

Their  home-grown  seed  is  one  and  three  fourths 


4G6  THE  POTATO 

to  one  and  seven  eighths  Inches  In  diameter,  but 
when  they  buy  Scotch  seed,  the  Scotch  seed 
grower  furnishes  larger  sized  seed.  Their  seed 
stocks  are  largely  selected  from  the  market  crops 
that  run  through  a  one  and  seven  eighths  inch 
mesh.  They  are  selected  in  the  field  and  are  im- 
mediately put  in  crates  or  storage  boxes  about 
three  inches  deep,  and  stacked  up  in  the  open  air 
as  long  as  safe  from  frost  or  freezing  weather, 
which  is  usually  about  the  middle  of  October. 
Then  they  are  stored  in  their  glass  storage  houses 
for  the  winter. 

Two  days  before  my  arrival  at  Mr.  Dennis's, 
Monday  evening,  they  had  sprayed  a  forty-acre 
field  of  May  Queen  for  leaf  blight.  These  were 
early  potatoes  they  expected  to  harvest  the  fol- 
lowing week  for  market.  When  late  that  evening 
they  discovered  indication  of  leaf  blight,  they  knew 
the  spraying  had  been  delayed  two  days  too  long. 
That  night  arrangements  were  made  for  thirty  or 
forty  men  to  commence  pulling  the  tops  in  the 
early  morning.  This  keeps  the  disease  from  at- 
tacking the  tubers.  The  potatoes  were  not  much 
more  than  half  grown.  In  two  days'  time  the 
tops  had  been  pulled  from  this  field  and  thrown  in 
neat  winrows.  The  rest  of  the  crop  would  be  left 
in  the  ground  for  twenty  days,  then  lifted  and  put 
in  boxes  and  kept  in  the  open  until  danger  of 
frosts,  then  stored  for  seed.  They  were  too  green 
for  market,  but  would  make  good  seed.  To  a  po- 
tato grower  of  the  sunny  irrigated  West  this  fun- 
gous blight  in  its  rapidity  of  development  is  fright- 
ening, as  in  three  or  four  days  50  per  cent,  of  the 
tubers  will  be  diseased.  They  will  have  great 
brown  spots,  looking  like  brown  blisters.  These 
potatoes   had   been   sprayed   some   two   or   three 


THE  POTATO  407 

times  previous,  but  the  weather  conditions  (con- 
tinuous cloudy,  sunless,  rainy  weatlier)  made  the 
disease  hard  to  combat.  Had  the  temperatures 
been  high,  it  would  have  been  a  terrible  disaster 
to  the  British  potato  industry.  The  early  growing 
sorts  are  more  susceptible  than  the  more  hardy 
main  crops.  When  the  disease  strikes  a  district  it 
spreads  with  the  fierceness  of  a  prairie  fire.  It  is 
one  of  the  very  great  problems  to  contend  with 
where  there  is  such  a  rank,  rapid  growth  of  vege- 
tation. I  am  inclined  to  think  there  is  greater 
danger  from  their  very  close  planting.  The  thick, 
dense  foliage  completely  shades  the  lower  leaves 
and  soil  from  the  little  bit  of  sun  that  they  do  have. 

As  everywhere  else  in  Great  Britain,  they  rely 
on  barnyard  manure,  with  occasional  crops  of 
clover,  for  humus.  The  idea  is  to  keep  as  great  an 
acreage  in  potatoes  as  possible  and  yet  keep  up 
their  yields  and  freedom  from  disease.  About 
one  third  of  their  arable  lands  are  kept  in  potatoes, 
or  potatoes  two  years  out  of  six,  with  clover  and 
other  grasses  one  year;  and  for  the  other  three 
years  wheat,  oats,  barley,  white  mustard,  man- 
gels, and  Swedes  for  their  cattle.  I  saw  some  good 
fields  that  had  grown  potatoes  twelve  years  out  of 
eighteen,  and  one  farm  that  had  been  in  potatoes 
twelve  consecutive  years.  Here  the  land  was  fall 
plowed  as  deep  as  their  big  three-horse  Shire 
teams  with  present  style  plows  could  turn  it. 
They  often  plow  twice  between  crops.  AVlien  this 
is  done  one  of  the  plowings  will  be  shallow. 

For  early  potatoes  they  thoroughly  harrow  and 
lav  out  their  lands.  The  rows  are  twentv-five 
inches  apart,  hills  twelve  inelies  a])art  in  the  row. 
Late  potatoes  are  planted  '27  x  14  inches,  and  in 
the  fens  or  peat  land,  30  x  l'^  inches.     TIkmf  peat 


468  THE  POTATO 

soil  is  so  loose  and  light  that  it  does  not  hold  its 
form  in  ridging  so  well,  so  they  plant  wide  to  give 
more  soil  for  better  ridging.  Up  to  the  present 
time  this  soil  has  required  no  nitrate  of  soda  or 
nitrogen,  but  requires  phosphates,  lime,  and  potash. 

Whole  seed  with  green  sprouts  one  half  inch 
long  are  placed  in  the  furrow  by  women  and  chil- 
dren. They  use  light,  one-horse  cultivators,  and 
practise  what  we  would  call  shallow  cultivation. 
They  depend  largely  on  hand  hoeing  and  hand 
weeding.  It  seems  to  be  the  only  system  in  the 
close  rows,  and  these  close  rows  and  close  planting 
are  very  important  factors  in  the  large  yields  in 
Europe  as  compared  to  our  small  yields  in  America, 
where  we  plant  in  rows  three  to  four  feet  wide  with 
hills  fifteen  to  twenty-four  inches  apart,  producing 
a  few  large,  rough  potatoes  in  a  hill  and  a  small 
number  of  bushels  to  the  acre. 

They  spray  two  to  five  times  per  season  for  blight 
at  an  expense  of  $2.50  an  acre  per  spray.  Sutton's 
Epicure  is  producing  nine  tons  of  salable  po- 
tatoes per  acre  this  19th  day  of  July  (1910)  at 
$15  a  ton  net.  They  would  get  thirteen  tons 
matured  thirty  days  later  at  $10  a  ton.  Their 
method  of  harvesting  would  be  very  primitive  and 
crude  to  our  potato  growers  with  improved  ma- 
chinery in  the  United  States.  Boys  and  girls  first 
pull  the  tops  in  two  rows  and  throw^  the  tops  on 
harvested  land.  Then  the  potatoes  that  were 
pulled  out  with  the  tops  are  picked  up  from  the 
surface  and  the  balance  are  plowed  out  with  old- 
fashioned  shovel  plows  with  rod  attachments. 
Then  the  potatoes  that  lay  on  the  surface  are 
picked  up  by  women,  boys  and  girls  and  carried  to 
a  point  where  they  are  being  sacked.  The  land  is 
then  harrowed  twice  and  picked  over  again,  so 


THE  POTATO  4G9 

they  will  get  any  potatoes  that  have  been  covered 
up  by  the  mefficiency  of  the  crude  digger  they 
have  been  using.  They  are  thrown  into  a  round 
sieve  thirty  inches  in  diameter  that  sets  on  an- 
other sieve,  and  this  on  top  of  an  empty  barrel. 
The  top  sieve  has  a  three  fourths  inch  mesh.  A 
man  shakes  this  sieve  and  the  potatoes  that  do 
not  go  through  this  sieve  are  pitched  into  a  sack 
held  by  a  sack-holder.  The  lower  sieve  holds  the 
very  small  potatoes  for  stock  feed.  It  takes  a  big, 
strong  man  to  do  this  all  day.  All  potatoes  over  a 
three  fourths  inch  mesh  are  nuirketed  as  early 
potatoes.  Sacks  weigh  112  pounds  net.  Eng- 
lish laws  do  not  allow  the  weighing  of  a  package  or 
a  sack  in  marketing,  as  is  the  custom  in  America. 
They  do  have  weigh  bridges  (scales)  for  potatoes 
if  they  do  not  for  cattle.  Every  sack  of  potatoes 
is  sold  at  the  net  weight  at  which  it  is  filled  at 
harvesting  time. 

The  laborers  pull  the  top,  dig  up  and  sort,  sack, 
weigh  and  sew  and  winrow  the  tops,  going  over 
the  field  twice,  for  $10  per  acre,  contract  price. 
The  boys  and  girls  make  30  cents  a  day,  the  women 
48  cents,  and  men  $1.      All  board  themselves. 

The  main  or  late  crop  is  harvested  and  handled 
the  same  w  ay,  and  goes  direct  to  market.  Those 
that  are  stored  for  late  market  are  put  in  pits  or 
piled  upon  the  ground  six  or  seven  feet  wide  at 
the  base  and  coned  up  at  an  angle  of  forty-five 
degrees.  As  the  weather  gets  colder  they  are 
thatched  with  straw  and  dirt  is  added. 

On  this  farm  an  economical  plan  is  just  being 
worked  out.  It  is  a  narrow  gauge  railway  that 
goes  around  the  outside  of  a  1,000-acre  farm  and 
once  through  the  centre,  running  to  the  storage 
house  and  railway  shipping  station.     When    the 


470  THE  POTATO 

potatoes  are  harvested  they  are  pitted  or  stored 
alongside  this  railway.  They  call  these  pits 
*' clamps."  There  are  600  acres  of  potatoes  on 
this  farm  that  will  be  harvested  and  stored  in  this 
way,  making  a  pit  three  miles  long.  They  expect 
ten  tons  to  the  acre,  making  6,000  tons  of  potatoes. 

The  carting  of  potatoes  in  this  level  peat  soil 
is  often  quite  impossible  when  they  have  excessive 
rain. 

Land  values  in  Lincolnshire  have  changed  very 
greatly  in  forty  years.  They  are  about  the 
same  values  now  as  in  1870.  Then  Mr.  Dennis 
paid  $500  per  acre  for  his  first  purchase.  He 
pointed  out  to  me  a  100-acre  farm  for  which  $500 
an  acre  was  refused  in  1870.  It  was  sold  in  1908 
for  $275  an  acre.  Since  1870  the  lands  that  sold 
as  low  as  $175  to  $300  an  acre  are  bringing  from 
$400  to  $500  an  acre. 

These  lands  are  now  producing  up  to  fifty-six 
bushels  of  wheat  to  the  acre,  with  a  general  aver- 
age of  a  series  of  years  of  forty-five  bushels.  It 
weighs  sixty-three  pounds  to  the  bushel.  Oats 
produce  up  to  eighty  bushels,  weighing  forty-two 
pounds  to  the  bushel.  The  general  average  is 
sixty  bushels  to  the  acre.  A  great  deal  of  the  grain 
of  1909  is  still  in  the  stacks  unthreshed.  They  do 
not  thresh  their  grain  until  they  need  the  straw. 
It  is  kept  in  thatched  stacks  instead  of  in  ware- 
houses. 

Growing  white  mustard  is  a  very  profitable 
industry  and  it  serves  as  a  good  change  of  crops 
for  soils.  It  often  returns  $60  an  acre  with  very 
little  expense. 

A  very  interesting  visit  was  made  to  Titus  Kime, 
Marham-le-Fen,  Boston,  Lincolnshire.  In  a  letter 
to  E.  H.  Grubb  in  July,  1911,  he  gives  many  facts 


in^  f 


I  ITT'S  KIMH 


Norlhcni  Shir  |)(»l;itoe.s  grown  l)y  'I'ihis  Kimo 


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72 


CI. 


THE  POTATO  471 

about  his  potato  and  hog  business.     Extracts  from 
the  letter  follow : 

*'This  has  been  the  earliest  season  for  potatoes 
ever  known  in  our  neighborhood  (Lincolnshire) 
since  we  began  to  send  early  potatoes  in  quantity 
to  market.  June  11th  was  the  earliest  day  pre- 
viously we  have  ever  sent  tons  to  market.  This 
year  I  sent  away  on  June  Cth  and  7th  three  tons 
twelve  hundredweight  of  Early  Puritans  (this 
is  an  American  variety)  and  they  realized  exactly 
£50  English  money  ($250)  gross. 

*'0n  June  12th  I  got  away  a  few  Eclipse  and 
realized  a  very  good  price,  and  on  June  15th  I  be- 
gan to  dig  Eclipse  with  a  good  gang  of  diggers  and 
pickers.  And  about  these  I  must  tell  you  a  little 
history  which  I  hope  will  interest  you.  On  July 
20,  1910,  I  bought  two  fields  of  land  here  near  the 
woods  and  very  poor  indeed  —  well  known  as  be- 
ing the  poorest  land  in  the  parish.  Perhaps  you 
do  not  know  the  old  English  saying, '  If  you  want  to 
take  land  go  near  the  church  and  far  from  the 
wood.'  These  two  fields  have  an  area  of  exactly 
fourteen  acres.  They  cost  £18  ($90)  per  acre; 
this  is,  £252  ($1,2G0). 

"  Now  perhaps  you  will  excuse  me  from  boasting, 
but  I  had  potatoes  well  started  in  boxes  —  Eclipse 
was  the  kind  —  and  planted  on  these  fields  in 
March.  This  land  is  very  light,  and,  as  I  said, 
very  poor,  and  I  wanted  to  get  it  cleared  up  as 
early  as  possible  to  sow  for  tuniips,  as  getting  a  crop 
of  turnips  eaten  oft'  poor  land  succeeds  splendidly 
here,  makes  us  sure  of  a  good  grain  crop  (barley 
or  oats)  the  following  year,  or,  we  can  take  an- 
other crop  of  potatoes.  Well,  I  succeedtHl  in  get- 
ting all  the  potatoes   off  of  that  field  'green,'  as 


472  THE  POTATO 

we  call  it,  and  the  land  is  now  ready  all  in  good 
time  for  the  growing  of  turnips  for  this  season, 
with  every  prospect  of  a  good  crop,  and  the  po- 
tatoes have  realized  £276  ($1,380)  —  that  is  more 
than  the  purchase  price  of  the  land  and  I  am  very 
much  pleased  and  rather  proud  of  the  result. 

"The  cultivation  was  quite  expensive.  The 
field,  after  barley,  had  fifty  tons  of  good  cowyard 
manure  made  under  cover  and  a  good  deal  from 
feeding  linseed  and  cotton  cake,  put  on  before 
being  plowed.  Then  four  hundredweight  per 
acre  of  kainit  was  sown  broadcast  on  top  of  the 
plowing,  and  after  being  ridged  ready  for  planting 
six  hundredweight  of  Peruvian  guano  was  sown 
down  the  ridges,  and  after  the  potatoes  were  well 
up  one  hundredweight  of  nitrate  of  soda  was  sown 
straight  down  the  rows. 

"The  other  field  had  no  cowyard  manure,  but 
four  hundredweight  of  kainit  per  acre  was  sown 
broadcast  after  plowing  and  then  one  ton  of  shoddy 
waste  manure  per  acre  was  thrown  on  and  pretty 
well  spread.  After  ridging  ready  for  potato 
planting  we  sowed  ten  hundredw^eight  per  acre 
of  a  compound  potato  manure,  analyzing  about  4 
per  cent,  ammonia,  3J  per  cent,  potash,  and  25  per 
cent,  soluble  phosphate,  and  after  the  potatoes 
were  well  up  and  about  ready  for  ridging  up  we 
sowed  one  hundredweight  nitrate  of  soda  straight 
down  the  rows. 

"You  will  see  from  the  above  that  both  fields 
were  pretty  liberally  manured  and  the  crops  paid 
for  it,  because  I  find  if  we  mean  to  dig  potatoes 
early  (and  every  day's  delay  makes  a  difference  in 
price)  we  must  be  liberal  with  manure  in  order  to 
force  Uiem  along. 

"I  have  about  forty  kinds  of  new  and  old  po- 


THE  POTATO  473 

tatoes  this  year,  and  among  the  new  ones  per- 
haps two  or  three  are  sliowiiig  some  very  good 
points.  One  tuber  I  got  from  America  I  am  afraid 
will  be  of  no  use  here.  It  has  a  pale  green  haulm 
with  white  flowers  and  much  too  floriferous  for 
a  new  potato. 

"I  have  two  tubers  growing  which  were  sent  to 
me  by  a  firm  in  Scotland,  asking  me  to  plant  them 
both  whole.  I  did  so,  one  yard  apart,  and  these 
two  rows  make  a  fine  picture.  The  haulm  is 
splendid,  and  although  the  tubers  were,  as  I  say, 
planted  three  feet  apart,  the  haulms  met  on  July 
1st. 

"On  the  other  hand,  just  lately,  I  had  the  pleas- 
ure of  paying  $37.40  for  a  few  of  the  new  kind  that 
I  am  afraid  are  not  worth  7  pence-ha'penny. 
Early  Puritan,  Duke  of  York,  Sharp's  Express,  and 
Echpse  are  the  best  early  for  earliest  market  pur- 
poses, and  the  grand  old  Up-to-Date  is  still  the 
best  main  crop  we  have,  but  Ever  Good,  Royal 
Kidney,  and  Northern  Star  are  largely  grown  for 
main  crop  in  Lincolnshire.  The  finest  quality 
of  all  for  eating  is  the  old  Clarke  main  crop,  now 
grown  under  many  other  names,  such  as  Lang- 
worthy,  East  Anglian,  etc.  This  potato  grows 
well  and  produces  a  fairly  good  yield  on  good  po- 
tato land,  but  on  naturally  poor  land,  no  matter 
how  well  it  is  manured,  it  will  not  do  so  well. 

"My  potatoes  this  year  I  think  look  as  well  as 
I  have  ever  had  them.  I  have  about  thirty  acres 
of  Eclipse  growing  from  seed  direct  from  Scotland, 
and  I  think  if  you  saw  them  you  would  say  they 
are  a  grand  sight. 

"As  to  pigs,  I  still  keep  my  usual  ciuantity,  1^20 
to  150,  and  I  am  always  breeding  and  always  feed- 
ing all  the  year  round,     I  am  a  member  of  the 


474  THE  POTATO 

Lincolnshire  Curly-Coated  Pig  Breeders'  Asso- 
ciation, but  I  get  up  no  pigs  for  showing  and  make 
no  fancy  prices.  My  pig  business  is  principally 
feeding.  The  last  two  years,  when  prices  have 
been  good,  I  have  sent  away  on  an  average  of 
twenty  fat  pigs,  weighing  about  twenty  stone  (280 
pounds)  each,  live  weight,  every  six  weeks. 

*'I  feed  all  my  waste  potatoes  to  the  pigs.  I 
have  a  boiler  which  holds  about  350  pounds  of 
potatoes,  and  when  we  have  plenty  of  waste  po- 
tatoes, or  our  ordinary  potatoes  are  making  any- 
thing under  40  shillings  per  ton,  we  cook  on  an 
average  of  nine  hundredweight  per  day.  In  my 
valuation  I  put  all  waste  potatoes  down  at  15 
shillings  ($3.60)  per  ton,  but  I  do  not  sell  any  under 
20  shillings  ($4.80)  per  ton. 

"As  to  meal,  etc.,  for  feeding  pigs:  When  po- 
tatoes are  plentiful,  we  cook  liberal  quantities  and 
mix  in  a  large  cemented  brick  receptacle  that  will 
hold  about  200  gallons.  Say  we  shall  throw  into 
this  about  six  hundredweight  of  potatoes  and  mix 
up  with  about  four  hundredweight  of  meal,  one 
half  barley  meal  and  the  other  half  wheat  shorts. 
If  the  boiler  is  not  freely  employed  cooking  po- 
tatoes we  fill  up  the  time  by  cooking  maize  pre- 
viously ground.  This  makes  good  food  to  mix  in, 
and  we  consider  cooked  maize  very  good  food  for 
pigs.  Also,  if  beans,  peas,  and  wheat  happen  to 
be  as  cheap,  or  nearly  as  cheap,  as  barley,  we  grind 
them  up  pretty  freely  and  mix  with  the  barley 
meal.  Barley  meal,  sold  as  barley  meal,  is  well 
known  to  be  often  by  no  means  ground  from  bar- 
ley alone.  If  lentils  or  Indian  grain  are  reason- 
able in  price,  all  in  moderation  make  excellent 
food  for  pigs,  but  sows  that  have  just  farrowed 
and  which  are  suckling  their  pigs  should  have  very 


THE  POTATO  475 

little  of  any  kind  of  meal  except  (wliere  practi- 
cable) fine  wheat  shorts. 

"It  is  a  good  plan  to  begin  to  feed  the  young  pigs 
when  about  four  weeks  old,  by  themselves,  on  a 
little  wheat  and  shorts  mixed  with  skimmed  milk, 
if  you  have  it.  As  to  the  breeding  sows,  I  keep 
mine  now  at  less  than  half  the  cost  I  used  to 
twenty  years  ago.  I  generally  have  about  fifteen 
or  sixteen  brooding  sows  or  gilts,  and  most  of  these 
run  out  summer  and  winter  with  the  boar  in  a 
grass  field.  In  this  field  they  have  about  five 
acres  to  themselves  and  have  rough  sheds  to  lay 
in.  We  take  them  about  four  buckets  —  say, 
about  ten  gallons  (perhaps  twelve  gallons)  — 
per  day  of  slop  made  of  meal  and  potatoes,  and 
they  get  plenty  of  exercise  picking  up  a  living  from 
the  grass  and  a  few  rough  roots  such  as  very  rough 
potatoes,  mangles  and  waste  grains  of  any  kind 
when  we  have  them.  Sows  and  gilts  in  pig,  in  my 
opinion,  require  plenty  of  exercise  and  should  only 
be  shut  up  a  few  days  before  pigging." 

After  fully  studying  and  investigating  the  Lin- 
colnshire farm  district,  farm  lands,  livestock, 
grass,  grazing,  and  potatoes,  I  cannot  see  wherein 
they  have  an  earning  capacity  equal  to  the  irri- 
gated fertile  lands  that  have  a  suflScient  water 
supply,  like  Colorado,  Idalio,  Utah,  and  Cali- 
fornia. The  latter  exceed  them  in  quantity  and 
quality  of  everything  produced.  ,We  (in  the 
West)  can  and  do  grow  more  wheat,  more  grass, 
more  oats,  potatoes,  and  more  hay,  with  a  more 
liealthful  climate,  and  with  all  kinds  of  fruit. 
Lincolnshire  is  debarred  from  growing  fruits. 
Above  all,  our  continual  summer  sunshine  enables 
us  to  harvest  our  crops  without  loss  and  in  good 


476  THE  POTATO 

condition  when  grown.  I  am  safe  in  saying  that 
these  lands  that  are  valued  at  $500  an  acre  on  their 
revenue-earning  capacity  have  an  earning  ability 
of  50  per  cent,  less  than  good  Western  irrigated 
lands. 

SUMMARY 

The  following  practice  of  European  potato 
growers  should  be  of  interest  and  value  to  Ameri- 
can producers: 

1.  The  use  of  deep-rooting  grasses  —  rye  grass, 
alfalfa,  etc. 

2.  The  use  of  large  quantities  of  animal  ma- 
nures. 

3.  The  use  of  immature,  northern-grown  seed. 

4.  The  careful  storage  of  seed  stocks  in  trays. 

5.  Selection  of  seed  to  type  and  purity  of  va- 
rieties. 

G.  Close  planting. 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII 

THE    CHANNEL    ISLANDS 

THE  first  early  open  field  grown  potatoes  of 
the  season  for  the  London  markets  are 
from  the  Canary  Islands,  southwest  of 
Spain.  The  next  are  from  the  Jersey  Islands  and 
arrive  in  London  in  April  and  May.  Early  po- 
tatoes that  are  marketed  previous  to  that  time 
are  grown  under  glass  in  the  Jersey  and  Guernsey 
Islands. 

There  are  so  many  factors  and  features  of  po- 
tato work  in  Jersey  that  it  is  really  hard  to  com- 
prehend the  magnitude  of  the  industry.  In  round 
figures  there  are  19,000  acres  of  this  fertile  little 
island,  of  which  about  one  half  is  cropped  continu- 
ously in  potatoes  and  has  been  for  a  long  time, 
some  of  it  for  fifty  consecutive  years.  By  the 
most  scientific  methods  and  study  they  have  not 
only  maintained  but  gradually  increased  their  high 
3'ields.  All  of  the  potato  growers  are  breeders  and 
growers  of  Jersey  cattle. 

A  tenant  who  farms  about  sixty  acres  is  the 
largest  operator.  He  is  a  breeder  of  cattle,  grows 
twenty-five  acres  of  potatoes  annually,  and  is  the 
most  up-to-date,  money-making  farmer  on  the 
island.  He  i)ays  a  rental  of  $60  an  acre  annually. 
He  values  his  low  grazing  land,  too  low  for  po- 
tato growing,  at  $35  an  acre  a  year  for  pasture. 

The  main  }:)ortion  of  the  crop  is  planted  early  in 
February  and  harvested  in  May  and  June.     The 

477 


478  THE  POTATO 

price  received  Is  from  $20  to  $100  per  ton.  The 
market  is  very  changeable,  often  varying  as  much 
as  $20  a  ton  in  a  day,  according  to  the  suppHes  in 
the  London  market.  They  get  an  average  yield 
on  the  island  of  425  bushels  to  the  acre,  but  many 
of  these  potatoes  are  sold  when  only  partly  grown. 
A  maximum  yield  of  750  bushels  to  the  acre  is 
considered  about  the  limit  for  matured  potatoes 
per  acre. 

They  plant  very  closely.  The  rows  are  six- 
teen inches  apart,  the  hills  twelve  inches  apart 
in  the  row.  The  potatoes  are  ridged  with  hand 
plows.  It  is  necessary  to  use  hand  power  in 
cultivation  because  the  potatoes  are  planted 
so  close  together.  They  can  grow  a  large  num- 
ber of  hills  per  acre,  on  account  of  the  great 
amount  of  concentrated  fertilizer  applied  to  the 
land. 

Only  one  variety  of  potato  Is  grown.  This  is 
known  as  the  Royal  Jersey.  It  is  kidney-shaped 
and  is  the  smoothest  potato  I  have  ever  seen.  No 
one  seems  to  know  the  origin  of  it,  but  it  is  thought 
that  it  comes  from  seed  stocks  shipped  in  years  ago. 
It  surely  would  be  an  acquisition  to  have  a  ship- 
ment of  these  potatoes  come  to  the  United  States, 
to  have  them  experimented  with  in  the  early  po- 
tato districts.  The  variety  does  not  seem  to  be 
grown  any  place  except  on  this  island. 

This  calls  to  mind  the  wart,  or  black  scab,  dis- 
ease of  potatoes.  These  shrewd  islanders  are  a 
very  careful,  exacting  class  of  people  in  all  of  their 
affairs.  For  a  great  many  years  they  have  not 
allowed  the  importation  of  any  livestock,  not  even 
for  slaughtering  on  the  day  of  arrival.  For  this 
reason  infectious  or  contagious  diseases  of  cattle 
have  never  been  known  on  the  island.     On  first 


llarvcsliiii;'  early  polaloes  on  liu-  l>laiiii  ol    .Jersey 


Oats  on  the  Island  of  Jersey.     The  senior  author  is  standing  in 
the  field  and  holding  up  his  hand 


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THE  rOTATO  479 

information  of  the  dread  wart  disease  of  potatoes 
the  parhament  of  the  island  (whieh  has  home  rule) 
quarantined  Great  Britain  against  sending  any 
potatoes  into  the  ishmd.  They  are  not  even  al- 
lowed to  be  brought  in  for  table  use.  This  shows 
how  they  protect  their  most  important  money- 
making  industry.  Our  national  Congress  could 
well  pattern  after  this  in  the  protection  of  the 
American  farmer  and  potato  grower. 

The  revenue  derived  from  potatoes  per  acre  is 
sometimes  quite  fabulous  when  they  get  an  early 
crop.  They  are  subject  to  spring  frosts  in  March, 
which  checks  the  growth  as  much  as  three  weeks. 
One  farmer  told  me  he  lost  $8,000  by  frost  in  one 
morning.  The  crop  often  brings  as  much  as 
$400  and  $500  an  acre.  One  grower  received 
$2,090  on  one  and  three  fourths  acres  of  the  land. 
This  is  a  remarkable  little  block  of  warm,  sandy 
soil,  encircled  by  a  stone  wall  to  shelter  it  from  the 
winds,  and  sloping  to  the  south  at  an  angle  of  al- 
most forty  degrees.  I  think  it  is  the  finest  f)iecc 
of  land  that  I  have  ever  seen  cropped.  He  took 
the  chances  of  planting  them  very  early,  used  an  ex- 
cessive amount  of  fertilizer,  and  well-sprouted 
seed,  planted  w^hole.  He  harvested  and  shipped 
them  in  one  day,  when  the  London  market  was 
bare  of  potatoes.  This  land  will  readily  rent  for 
$250  an  acre,  as  it  is  the  earliest  piece  of  land  on 
the  island.  I  saw  one  twelve-acre  farm  that  rents 
for  $140  an  acre.  In  recent  years  this  land,  which 
produces  the  early  crop,  has  appreciated  very 
nmch  in  market  value.  It  is  now  valued  at  from 
$1,000  to  $2,500  an  acre.  I  heard  of  many  small 
tracts  that  are  being  rented  at  from  $75  to  $175 
an  acre.  No  wonder  that  this  19,000  acres  of 
arable  land  supports  a  population   of  55,000  and 


480  THE  POTATO 

over,  20,000  domestic  farm  animals,  or  three 
people  and  one  domestic  farm  animal  per  acre. 

I  saw  meadow  grass  —  a  combination  of  nearly 
all  of  the  legumes  and  other  grasses  —  being  har- 
vested. It  gave  a  yield  at  one  cutting  of  five  tons 
to  the  acre  (2,240  pounds  to  the  ton). 

Following  this  is  a  second  crop  to  be  grazed  off 
by  the  cattle  for  fall  and  winter  pasture.  This  is 
the  result  of  feeding  the  soil  with  liquid  manure 
from  the  cow  barns.  It  is  sprinkled  over  the 
meadows  from  time  to  time  with  an  apparatus 
something  like  a  street  sprinkler.  If  this  land 
is  kept  in  grass,  say,  for  three  years,  it  will 
grow  potatoes  continuously,  year  after  year,  al- 
most indefinitely.  Potatoes  are  often  followed 
with  tomatoes.  I  saw  one  ten-acre  tract  the  po- 
tatoes from  which  had  been  harvested  in  May. 
On  the  6tli  of  July  13,500  tomato  plants  per  acre 
were  in  bloom  and  setting  tomatoes.  They  would 
give  $600  to  $700  an  acre  as  a  second  crop.  Often, 
after  the  potatoes  are  harvested,  the  land  is  im- 
mediately sown  to  Italian  rye  grass  for  the  cows. 
This  gives  them  the  turf  and  splendid  root  system 
of  the  rye  grass  to  feed  the  land  for  the  next  year's 
potato  crop. 

I  saw  this  big  sixty-acre  farmer,  the  sixth  of  July, 
digging,  sorting  and  putting  away  his  seed  for  the 
next  year's  cropping.  The  potatoes  were  lifted 
by  hand  with  forks;  women  were  picking  out  by 
hand  the  most  perfect  potatoes  for  seed  stocks  and 
placing  them  in  boxes  to  be  stored  in  their  stone 
storage  houses.  They  were  put  in  boxes  about 
three  inches  deep,  and  were  sorted  to  size.  Noth- 
ing is  wasted  on  the  Jersey  Islands.  A  potato  no 
larger  than  a  hazel-nut  is  picked  up  and  used  for 
something. 


THE  POTATO  481 

I 

Three  bushels  of  com  (It  looks  like  Americtan 
corn)  were  sown  over  the  field  before  the  potatoes 
were  dug  so  that  the  digging  of  the  potatoes  w  ould 
cover  the  seed  three  or  four  inches  deep.  This 
grows  and  is  used  for  pasture  and  forage  for  cattle 
and  horses.  It  is  also  an  aid  in  feeding  the  land 
as  a  cover  crop  for  the  next  year's  potato  growing. 
They  did  not  lose  one  hour's  time  in  the  use  of  the 
land.  This  corn  would  be  up  in  four  or  five  days 
and  making  rapid  growth. 

The  soil  is  a  disintegrated  granite  formation. 

Sometimes  immediately  after  harvesting  the 
potatoes  they  sow  the  land  down  to  rye  grass  and 
clover,  and  leave  it  two  years.  They  use  it  for  hay 
and  grazing,  sometimes  both.  The  first  year  after 
breaking  sod  they  use  no  barnyard  manure;  the 
second  and  third  years  they  use  all  the  barnyard 
manure  they  can  secure,  twenty -five  or  thirty  tons 
if  possible,  with  a  ton  of  commercial  fertilizer 
additional  to  the  acre. 

They  usually  spray  two  to  five  times  during  the 
growing  season.  The  best  farmers  always  spray 
five  times,  and  they  always  secure  a  full  crop.  I 
saw  two  fields  adjoining.  The  conditions  w^ere 
the  same.  One  w^as  sprayed  five  times  and  the 
owner  expected  a  yield  of  thirteen  tons  to  the  acre 
or  more,  w'hile  the  field  alongside,  sprayed  twice, 
was  completely  burned  up  with  blight.  There 
was  nothing  but  the  black  stalks  left  standing.  It 
costs  about  $1.25  to  spray  each  time,  and  the  work 
is  always  done  by  hand,  as  they  cannot  use  horses 
in  their  closely  planted  fields. 

Their  system  of  using  partially  grown  seed  is 
practically  the  same  as  in  the  early  potato-growing 
districts  of  England  and  Scotland.  Saving  seed 
in  June   for  the   next   year's  planting    is    a  very 


482  THE  POTATO 

serious  problem.  It  must  be  held  over  during 
their  warm  months  of  summer  and  fall,  and  sprout- 
ing retarded  so  as  to  have  the  seed  in  good  con- 
dition for  planting  the  next  February. 

Owing  to  their  close  planting  they  require  from 
3,000  to  4,000  pounds  of  seed  to  the  acre.  They 
never  cut  seed. 

These  potato  growers  were  very  much  excited 
on  reading  the  Orchard  Heating  Bulletin^  published 
by  D.  E.  Burley,  general  passenger  agent  of  the 
Oregon  Short  Line  Railroad.  This  bulletin  tells 
how  fruit  is  saved  from  frost  by  the  use  of 
heating  pots  in  the  orchard.  They  think  frost 
protection  will  be  very  valuable  in  enabling  them 
to  put  their  potatoes  on  the  city  markets  of 
Europe  two  to  four  weeks  earlier  than  they  ever 
have  before. 

I  hope  to  see  their  great  money-making  meth- 
ods for  the  production  of  early  potatoes  adopted 
in  the  Sacramento  Valley  and  elsewhere  in  Cali- 
fornia. The  days  of  sunshine  here  are  much  more 
favorable  for  the  crop  than  the  chilly  winds  off  the 
sea  on  the  Jersey  Islands,  where  in  the  month  of 
July  I  was  not  uncomfortable  with  winter  clothing, 
and  where  I  saw  many  people  wearing  their  coats 
in  the  middle  of  the  day. 

The  unit  of  weight  which  is  used  in  the  market- 
ing of  farm  crops  in  Jersey  is  known  as  the  cabot. 
This  is  forty  pounds.  Their  potatoes  are  mar- 
keted in  willow  baskets  or  small  barrels.  The 
potatoes  are  sold  to  the  dealers  in  willow  baskets. 
The  dealer  barrels  them.  It  takes  a  quarter  of  a 
million  barrels  to  handle  the  potatoes  of  this  little 
island.  The  barrels  are  returned  from  the  mar- 
kets daily. 

There  are  large  numbers  of  glass  houses  for  grow- 


THE  POTATO  483 

ing  vegetables  and  crops  of  all  kinds.  This  gives 
winter  employment  and  income. 

The  amount  of  wheat  and  oats  that  grows  on 
this  granite  soil  is  wonderful.  Much  of  it  was 
higher  than  my  head  and  very  thick  on  the  ground, 
and  there  was  not  one  place  where  the  straw  was 
weak  enough  to  make  it  lodge.  It  had  the  strong- 
est, stiff  est  straw  I  have  ever  seen.  They  told  me 
the  wheat  would  give  an  average  of  sixty-nine 
bushels  to  the  acre.  It  did  surely  look  as  though 
no  more  could  grow  on  an  acre,  and  I  have  seen 
upward  of  seventy-five  bushels  in  the  irrigated 
West. 

Referring  again  to  the  fertilizing,  the  Agricul- 
tural Society  of  the  island  gives  prizes  for  the 
best  conducted  and  appointed  farm.  The  first 
requisite  in  the  scale  of  points,  in  a  total  of  sixty, 
is  farm  buildings,  manure  and  liquid  manure  tank, 
five  points;  if  neat  and  compact,  five  additional 
points.  There  are  eighteen  other  factors  for  con- 
sideration in  awarding  the  prize. 

Shiploads  of  guano  and  commercial  fetilizer  are 
imported  and  used;  great  quantities  of  turf,  roots, 
and  cover  crops  are  incorporated  in  the  soil,  and 
every  bit  of  animal  manure  is  conserved.  ]\Ia- 
nure  is  used  at  the  rate  of  twenty  to  twenty-five 
tons  when  they  have  it.  That  does  not  mean 
sticks,  fire  fanged,  coarse  manure  and  straws  but 
well-rotted  barnyard  manure  which  has  the  con- 
sistency of  well-ripened  sugar-beet  pulp. 

Their  humid,  cloudy,  sunless  climate  makes  a 
splendid  environment  for  disease  such  as  blight. 

As  a  plow  maker  I  have  contended  that  it  was 
nearly  impossible  to  make  a  moldboard  plow  that 
would  do  good  work  over  twelve  inches  deep,  but 
on  the  Jersey  Island  I  saw  moldboard  plows  that 


484  THE  POTATO 

plowed  an  eleven-inch  furrow,  eighteen  inches  deep 
and  turned  it  well.  The  moldboard  was  twenty- 
six  inches  deep,  with  a  strong  steel  beam  and  a  pair 
of  ordinary  wagon  wheels  for  a  front  truck  to  regu- 
late the  width  and  depth  of  the  furrow.  It  re- 
quired ten  heavy  horses  to  handle  it  with  the  turf 
and  manure  that  was  plowed  under.  A  farmer 
can  imagine  what  a  nest  or  bed  this  aerated,  fer- 
tilized soil  would  make  for  the  root  system  of  the 
potato  or  any  other  vegetable  crop.  It  also  makes 
a  fine  storehouse  for  moisture  and  heat. 

On  one  farm  the  crop  of  potatoes  from  ten  acres 
sold  for  $10,450.  Of  course,  this  was  a  very  ex- 
treme case,  for  the  potatoes  sold  for  eight  cents 
a  pound,  or  $180  a  ton.  The  man  farming  this 
land  said  it  would  readily  rent  for  $250  an  acre  on 
nineteen-year  leasehold.  The  man  who  gave  me 
this  information  is  a  leading  representative  tenant 
farmer.  He  told  me  that  he  made  annually  180 
barrels  of  apple  cider  and  consumed  it  all  on  the 
farm.  When  he  saw  me  drawing  a  long  breath  he 
led  me  to  the  storage  cellar  and  I  saw  the  tanks. 
He  said  there  was  no  other  beverage  used  on  the 
farm  for  his  family  or  help,  and  I  saw  great  pitch- 
ers and  mugs  of  it  in  the  fields  where  he  had 
thirty  men  at  work. 

A  great  deal  of  labor  is  imported  from  France 
during  potato  harvest,  the  total  annual  outlay  for 
this  item  being  $75,000  to  $90,000. 

The  following  very  interesting  account  of  the 
Channel  Islands  potato  industry  is  from  "Pic- 
torial Practical  Potato  Growing,"  by  Walter  P. 
Wright  and  Edward  J.  Castle* 

"The  Channel  Islands,  as  being  British  ter- 
ritory,  and   supplying    us   with   our   first    early 


THE  POTATO  485 

potatoes  in  bulk,  are  entitled  to  a  little  consid- 
eration here.  Guernsey  and  Jersey  are  the  chief 
islands  concerned  in  the  potato  trade,  the  bulk 
of  the  Guernsey  crop  being  raised  under  glass. 
Jersey  has  also  taken  up  glass  culture  to  some  ex- 
tent, but  still  relies  almost  solely  upon  outdoor 
crops.  These  are  grown  everywhere  —  by  road- 
sides, on  railway  platform  gardens,  on  the  slopes 
of  valleys  so  steep  that  one  wonders  how  the  soil 
keeps  in  position,  and  even  up  to  the  very  walls  of 
Jersey's  most  famous  *lion,'  Mount  Orgueil  Castle. 
"Digging  begins  in  the  more  favored  parts, 
such  as  L'Etac  and  St.  Aubyn's,  at  the  end  of 
April,  an  army  of  Breton  peasants,  with  their 
wives  and  families,  being  imported  for  the  purpose. 
The  potatoes  are  packed  in  barrels,  and  taken  to 
the  one  Jersey  port,  St.  Heliers,  whence  they  are 
shipped  to  England.  Prices  fluctuate  enormously 
even  in  a  single  day,  but  the  returns  have  aver- 
aged some  £400,000  ($2,000,000)  for  several  years 
past.  The  variety  grown  is  the  old  International 
Kidney,  raised  nearly  forty  years  ago  by  ]\Ir. 
Robert  Fenn,  and  in  its  day  the  leading  exhibi- 
tion variety." 


CHAPTER  XXXIX 

IRELAND 

HISTORY  is  responsible  for  the  statement 
that  the  first  potatoes  grown  in  Great 
Britain  were  planted  in  Ireland,  near  Cork. 
The  name  "Irish  Potato"  has  come  into  uni- 
versal use  and  many  believe  the  tuber  to  have 
originated  there. 

The  potato  has  for  generations  been  one  of 
the  principal  foods  of  the  Irish  peasant,  and  at 
the  present  time  potato  growing  and  all  other 
branches  of  Irish  agriculture  are  receiving  great 
attention.  One  of  the  world's  best  agriculturists, 
Professor  Campbell,  is  doing  a  wonderful  work  in 
advancing  the  farming  interests  of  Ireland. 

In  another  chapter  considerable  history  and 
data  concerning  Irish  potato  conditions  are  given. 
As  stated  there,  the  future  of  the  Irish  early  po- 
tato seems  particularly  bright.  In  "Leaflet  19" 
of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  and  Technical 
Instruction  for  Ireland,  issued  from  Dublin,  is 
the  following: 

"The  cultivation  of  potatoes  for  the  early  mar- 
ket is  undoubtedly  one  of  the  most  profitable 
branches  of  agriculture,  provided  the  produce  can 
be  put  on  the  market  at  the  beginning  of  the  season 
while  high  prices  still  obtain.  In  May  phenome- 
nally high  prices  are  procurable ;  any  time  in  June 
the  price  is  usually  good  enough  to  insure  hand- 

486 


THE  POTATO  487 

some  profits;  the  first  half  of  July  is,  as  a  rule,  bet- 
ter than  the  ordinary  late  or  main  crop,  and  the 
latter  half  of  July  as  good  as  winter  marketing. 

"With  the  advent  of  August,  prices  often  fall  to 
a  very  low  point,  and  the  risk  of  disease  being  very 
great,  only  those  growers  who  are  in  favored  po- 
sitions as  respects  markets  and  freightage  can  suc- 
ceed. It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  cost  of 
production  is  much  greater  than  in  the  case  of  the 
late  croj),  and  unless  several  pounds  sterling  per 
acre  more  is  received  for  the  early  crop  it  is  not 
profitable.  Within  the  last  twenty  years  great  de- 
velopments have  taken  place  in  this  industiy. 
Foreign  countries  have  participated  in  a  trade 
which  was  thought  impossible  to  them,  and  in  our 
own  country  the  cpop  has  been  greatly  accelerated. 

"The  season  ojjens  in  April  with  potatoes  from 
^lalta  and  Teneriffe.  In  INIay  great  quantities 
are  poured  into  our  markets  from  Jersey  and  Cotes 
du  Nord,  France.  Strangely  enough,  the  next 
place  in  point  of  earliness  is  a  strip  of  seaboard,  on 
the  west  coast  of  Scotland,  where  for  fifty  miles  in 
Ayrshire  and  Wigtonshire  the  Gulf  Stream  exer- 
cises a  beneficent  influence  directly  through  the 
North  Channel,  and  renders  that  district  singu- 
larly imnmne  from  spring  and  ^lay  frosts,  llie 
Ayrshire  season  commences  generally  about  the 
middle  of  June.  Good  crops  ready  to  raise  at 
that  date  are  worth  £40  per  statute  acre,  and  are 
sold  gro^^^ng  to  merchants,  who  take  all  further 
risks  and  bear  the  expense  of  raising,  the  farmer 
having  no  more  to  do  except  cart  the  potatoes  to 
the  nearest  station. 

"Ireland's  share  in  this  lucrative  industry  has 
hitherto  been  small,  although  her  ])hysieal  con- 
ditions  are   extremely   favorable.     It   would    not 


488  THE  POTATO 

be  possible  to  approach  the  earhness  of  the  Chan- 
nel Islands,  but  what  can  be  done  in  Scotland  may 
assuredly  be  improved  upon  in  Cork  and  Kerry, 
subject  to  the  same  ameliorating  influences  in 
even  greater  degree,  200  miles  farther  south,  and 
possessing  ideal  soil. 

"The  east  coast  of  Ireland  does  not  enjoy  so 
mild  a  climate,  but  whatever  is  lacking  in  that 
respect  is  compensated  for  by  contiguity  to  mar- 
kets and  greater  facilities  for  intensive  farming. 

"Early  potato  growing  has  long  been  practised 
in  County  Dublin,  and  at  one  time  Scotch  mar- 
kets were  largely  supplied  from  there.  Even  now 
it  is  perfectly  wonderful  what  has  been  achieved  at 
Rush,  by  a  race  of  shrewd  and  hardy  men,  whose 
ceaseless  and  laborious  industry  deserves  a  better 
reward.  By  the  adoption  of  some  of  the  new 
methods  for  accelerating  the  crop  they  can  in 
some  measure  recover  their  lost  supremacy,  and 
Ireland  generally  may  to  a  very  large  extent  par- 
ticipate in  the  extremely  profitable  industry  of 
supplying  England  with  early  potatoes." 


CHAPTER  XL 

CONTINENT    OF    EUROPE 

^S  AYILL  be  seen  by  the  graphic  map  of  the 
L\  world  in  Chapter  I,  the  aggregate  potato 
X  ^  production  of  the  countries  on  the  conti- 
nent of  Europe  is  enormous. 

During  his  European  trip  in  the  interest  of 
American  potato  growers,  the  senior  author  spent 
considerable  time  in  France  and  Germany  and  is 
indebted  to  Consul-General  Frank  M.  Mason, 
Paris;  Robert  P.  Skinner,  Consul-General,  Ham- 
burg; Lutten  &  Son,  commission  merchants,  Ham- 
burg; and  Baron  Kriesheim  of  Bariskow,  for  many 
courtesies  and  kindnesses. 

The  manufacture  of  starch,  flour,  alcohol,  and 
other  products  has  been  developed  extensively  in 
some  districts.  This  is  described  more  fully  in  the 
chapter  on  manufactures. 

In  a  report  of  Consul-General  Robert  P.  Skinner 
of  Hamburg  the  following  facts  about  the  situ- 
ation in  Germany  are  given: 

**A  number  of  causes  have  combmed  to  bring 
about  the  immense  German  potato  crop,  which  has 
apparently  reached  the  limit  of  profitableness,  as, 
in  spite  of  the  efforts  of  the  German  Government 
to  encourage  the  industrial  use  of  potatoes,  only 
4  per  cent,  of  the  total  crop  is  taken  up  for  the 
manufacture  of  starch  and  its  by-products,  and 
8  per  cent,  for  the  distillation  of  alcohol.     Thus  the 

489 


490  THE  POTATO 

chief  demand  for  potatoes  remains  the  ordinary 
consuming  market,  which,  because  of  cHmatic 
conditions,  looks  to  a  number  of  foreign  countries 
for  considerable  quantities  of  early  varieties. 
There  are  in  this  countiy  immense  areas  of  poor 
agricultural  land  which  yield  fairly  well  when 
planted  with  potatoes,  and  as  the  crop  is  valuable 
for  rotation  purposes,  and  the  table  demand  prob- 
ablv  greater,  relativelv,  in  Germanv  than  m  anv 
other  country,  and  the  industrial  appHcations  nu- 
merous, the  succeeding  vears  have  seen  the  \^eld 
advance  steadily  to  an  average  which  now  exceeds 
45,000,000  tons. 

"The  cultivation  of  potatoes  is  indirectly  encour- 
aged by  the  German  Government,  which  confers 
special  privileges  upon  farm  distilleries  consuming 
the  products  of  the  land.  Consul-General  Thac- 
kara,  in  his  able  report  of  October  3,  1908,  has 
furnished  valuable  figures  in  regard  to  the  pro- 
duction of  potatoes  and  their  uses.  In  respect  to 
the  agricultural  distilleries,  the  Imperial  Govern- 
ment permits  them  to  produce  a  certain  amount  of 
grain  or  potato  alcohol,  the  amount  depending 
upon  the  size  and  the  location  of  the  farms  ajid 
the  annual  demand  for  the  product,  upon  the  pay- 
ment of  a  revenue  tax  of  marks  1.05  (25  cents)  hi- 
st ead  of  the  usual  tax  of  marks  1.25  (29.75)  cents 
per  litre.  Alcohol  distilled  in  excess  of  the  quan- 
tum is  subject  to  the  higher  rate  of  tax,  and  de- 
natured alcohol  is  not  subject  to  any  tax  at  all. 
The  slops  are  used  for  feeding  and  the  refuse  is 
returned  to  the  land. 

"At  the  present  time  over  200  varieties  of  pota- 
toes are  raised  in  this  countiy,  the  most  of  which 
are  used  indifferently  for  all  purposes.  Naturally, 
such  varieties  as  have  a  small  content  of  water  are 


THE  POTATO  491 

best  adapted  for  the  production  of  alcohol.  In 
some  parts  of  Germany  a  mealy  potato  is  popular, 
while  in  others  the  watery  variety  is  preferred. 
The  hard,  mealy  tubers  are  found  to  keep  better 
through  the  winter  than  the  others.  A  loose  and 
not  too  heavy  soil  is  preferably  chosen  for  this  cul- 
ture, as  in  a  heavy  soil  the  crop  is  likely  to  deteri- 
orate or  become  diseased.  In  the  proximity  of 
large  cities  farmers  seek  to  raise  favorite  table 
varieties,  and  in  the  remote,  and  particularly  the 
northern,  portions  of  the  country  the  crop  goes 
to  a  large  extent  to  the  alcohol  distilleries  or  starch 
factories,  or  to  cattle  feeding  purposes.  In  por- 
tions of  the  empire  where  grain  is  a  large  crop 
potatoes  are  planted  every  fifth  or  sixth  year. 
Cabbage  also  is  raised  for  rotating  purposes  be- 
tween wheat  and  rye,  or  other  cereals.  Should 
the  demand  for  this  vegetable  be  considerably  in- 
creased there  are  large  tracts  of  marsh  and  heatli 
land  in  northern  Germany  which  could  be  im- 
proved and  made  to  yield  potatoes  in  fair  quan- 
tities. 

"The  success  of  the  German  farmer  with  potatoes 
has  largely-  resulted  from  the  necessity  of  securing 
an  income  from  soil  which  could  hardlv  be  utilized 
for  anything  else,  and  upon  such  soils,  in  addition 
to  stable  manure,  large  quantities  of  industrial 
fertilizers  are  also  applied.  In  connection  with 
experiments  made  by  order  of  the  Director  of  the 
Botanical  Garden  of  Hamburg,  the  following  in- 
dustrial fertilizers  have  been  successfully  used  for 
the  cultivation  of  potatoes: 

Kainit 0.7  tons  per  hectare  ('2.47  acres) 

Thomas  meal 0.5     "       " 

Chilean  nitrate.  .  .   0.3     " 


492  THE  POTATO 

*'The  kainit  and  Thomas  meal  were  applied  in 
the  fall  and  the  nitrate  was  strewn  in  the  spring. 
Instead  of  nitrate,  sulphate  of  ammonia  was  also 
used.  No  mention  is  made  of  superphosphates  as 
having  been  used  in  these  experiments,  although 
farmers  employ  them  to  a  very  large  extent. 
Kainit  is  a  mixture  of  sulphate  of  potash  and  sul- 
phate of  magnesia  with  variable  proportions  of 
chlorure  of  magnesium  and  marine  salt.  The 
useful  substance  in  this  combination  is  the  potash 
which  is  represented  by  a  proportion  of  12.96  per 
100.  As  the  chlorure  of  magnesium  is  a  salt  de- 
structive to  vegetation,  the  use  of  raw  kainit  is  not 
recommended.  As  a  rule  it  is  sold  in  prepared 
form  after  having  been  calcined,  whereby  the 
chlorure  is  eliminated. 

"Thomas  meal  is  a  fertilizer  made  from  basic 
slag.  Concerning  Chilean  nitrate  of  soda  it  is 
scarcely  necessary  to  speak.  In  respect  to  this 
fertilizer,  C.  V.  Garola  says  that  it  is  not  an  in- 
dispensable fertilizer,  and  need  not  be  employed 
unless  it  furnishes  a  pound  of  azote  at  a  cost  in- 
ferior to  that  of  other  fertilizers  containing  azote, 
such  as  blood,  honis,  flesh,  and,  particularly,  sul- 
phate of  ammonia. 

"Mr.  Garola,  already  quoted,  in  his  *Ten  Years  of 
Agricultural  Experiments'  says  in  regard  to  the  ef- 
fect of  fertilizers  upon  the  cultivation  of  potatoes : 
*The  potato  is  always  very  grateful  for  the  ma- 
nure that  it  receives.  A  strong  manure,  well  pre- 
pared, is  the  first  condition  to  a  good  crop.  By 
using  it  to  an  extent  of  thirty  tons  (the  author  does 
not  state  over  what  area)  I  have  obtained  an  in- 
crease of  88  per  cent,  in  the  yield ;  and  a  small  dos- 
ing of  manure,  completed  by  super-phosphate  and 
nitrate  of  soda,  increased  the  crop  by  105  per  cent. 


THE  POTATO  493 

This  confirms  wliat  I  have  ah'cady  recognized  in 
regard  to  other  crops  —  that  is  to  say,  that  ma- 
nure in  moderate  doses  and  with  complementary 
fertihzers  is  more  advantageous  than  a  heavy 
fertihzation  of  manure  alone.  The  doses  of 
phosphoric  acid  and  potash  should  be  increased 
in  poor  soils  and  diminished  in  rich  soils.  They 
should  be  buried  before  sowing.  As  to  the  ma- 
nure, it  should  be  turned  under  before  the  winter, 
if  possible.  Nitrate  of  soda  should  be  spread  at 
the  time  of  harrowing.' 

"This  writer  states  that  upon  reduced  surfaces 
he  has  obtained  550  quintals  (5.5  tons)  of  potatoes 
per  hectare  (2.47  acres).  The  maximum  yield 
observed  upon  a  larger  scale  and  upon  surfaces  of 
from  7  to  16  hectares  (17.29  to  39.52  acres)  was  410 
quintals  (4.1  tons).  He  considered  a  satisfactory 
yield,  with  proper  cultivation,  to  be  about  300 
quintals  (3  tons)  per  hectare  (2.47  acres.) 

"It  is  rather  doubtful  whether  American  potatoes 
can  be  sold  profitably  in  Europe,  or,  at  all  events, 
in  Germany,  in  spite  of  some  rather  optimistic  dis- 
cussion of  the  subject.  Wholesale  buyers  can  pro- 
cure German  potatoes  to-day  (December  22,  1910) 
at  $2  per  220  pounds  for  the  *egg'  variety,  and 
$1.52  per  220  pounds  for  the  *  Magnum  Bonum' 
variety. 

"(Prices  on  June  28,  1911,  date  of  copy  of  this 
report,  as  follows:  Egg  potatoes  sold  out.  At 
present  'long  spring  potatoes'  are  on  sale  and  are 
worth  $2.38  to  $2.62  per  220  pounds.  ':\Iagnum 
Bonum'  scarce  at  present  and  worth  $2.09  per 
220  pounds.  —  R.  P.  S).  • 

"In  order  to  sell  American  potatoes  in  Germany, 
it  would  be  necessarv  to  lav  them  down  in  New 
York  at  not  more  than  the  above  figures,  less  the 


494  THE  POTATO 

freight  to  Hamburg,  for  wliicli  my  only  quotation 
is  20  shillings  ($4.8665)  per  ton.  It  costs  only  16 
shillings  ($3.8928)  per  ton  to  ship  German  po- 
tatoes to  America,  and  perhaps  if  American  ships 
were  available  it  would  not  cost  20  shillings  to 
ship  American  potatoes  to  Germany,  or  Europe. 
From  August  1st  to  February  14th  foreign  pota- 
toes are  admitted  free  into  Germany,  but  at  other 
times  there  is  an  import  duty  of  60  cents  per 
220  pounds. 

"American  potatoes  offered  for  export  to  Ger- 
many, apparently,  would  not  bring  more,  f.o.b. 
New  York,  than  28  cents  per  bushel  of  60  pounds 
for  the  'Magnum  Bonum'  and  41  cents  for  the 
'egg'  variety.     The  calculation  stands  as  follows: 

Magnum 
Bonum  Egg 

Price  per  220  pounds  in  Hamburg  .  .  $1.52  $2 .  00 
Less  freight  from  New  York  to  Hamburg 

(48  cents) 1.04  1.52 

Net  price  in  New  York,  converting  price 

per  220  pounds  into  bushels  of  60 

pounds .28  .41 

*'With  these  figures  before  them,  American  cor- 
respondents can  determine  for  themselves  whether 
it  will  be  possible  to  pay  freight  rates  from  farm  to 
seaboard,  and  compete  with  the  prices  named. 
Statistics  follow: 

Potatoes  1909  1908 

Total  importations  into  Germany :  346,617  tons  329,417  tons 

From  Belgium 53,620  "  48,402  " 

Gibraltar,  Malta,  Cyprus. .  .  8,989  "  11,020  " 

France     9,349  "  6,757  " 

Italy     26,454  "  19,579  " 

Netherlands 163,311  "  168,322  " 

Austria-Hungary   16,592  "  29,439  " 

European  Russia  63,926  "  43,540  " 


THE  POTATO 


495 


Potatoes 


1909 


1908 


Total  exportationsfrom  Germany:  124,442  tons  115,236  tons 

To  France 2,120 

Netherlands 4,317 

Norway 4,931 

Austria-Hungary   62,969 

Sweden 10,108 

Switzerland 27,227 

Brazil 3,078 

United  States  of  America..  .  1,640 

Production  in  Germany 

1909  —  46,706,252  tons  1908  —  46,342,726  tons 

1907  —  45,538,299    "  1906  —  42,936,702    " 

1905  —  48,323,353  tons. 

Average  wholesale  prices  in  Germany:     Cash  for  prompt 
delivery.     (Per  1000  kilos,  2,200  pounds,  exclusive  bags): 


2,973 

13,991 

3,036 

12,731 

10,845 

18,401 

2,472 

1,480 

Good  Early  Red 
Unassorted  distilling 

Good  Early  Red 
Sound  assorted  table 

Good  sound  Silcsian 
table  potatoes 

Berlin 

Mks. 

Berlin 
Mks. 

Breslau 
Mks. 

1905 

36.50-$8.69 

53.40-$12.71 

50.40-$12.00 

1906 

20.40-  4.86 

34.60-     8.23 

33.20-     7.90 

1907 

29.90-  7.12 

53.10-  12.64 

40 .60-     9 . 06 

1908 

32.60-  7.76 

54.00-  12.85 

37.70-     8.97 

1909 

31.80-  7.57 

49.90-  11.88 

40.70-     9.69 

The  market  situation  in  France  is  given  in  a 
report  by  Consul-General  Frank  H.  Mason  of 
Paris  under  date  of  January  27,  1911: 

"The  shortage  in  the  French  potato  crop  has 
created  a  deficit  which  is  being  filled  by  large  ini- 
l)ortations  from  other  European  countries,  notably 
Great  Britain,  Austria,  Germany,  and  Belgium. 

"  Importations  of  potatoes  from  theUnited  States 
to  France  had  been  })rohibited  since  the  decree  of 
1875,  which  was  inspired  by  fear  of  the  Colorado 


496  THE  POTATO 

potato 'bug,  until  that  decree  was  annulled  on 
October  15,  1910,  opening  the  French  markets  to 
potatoes  from  the  United  States,  provided  tliej^  are 
clean,  free  from  the  soil  in  which  they  were  grown, 
and  the  packages  in  which  they  are  shipped  con- 
tain no  stems  or  leaves  of  the  potato  plant. 

''As  a  result  of  this  long  prohibition  American 
potatoes  are  practically  unknown  in  France,  and 
French  importers  have  no  acquaintance  or  es- 
tablished relations  with  American  exporters  which 
would  enable  the  trade  to  be  promptly  taken  up 
since  the  withdrawal  of  the  prohibitory  decree. 
Partly  for  this  reason,  and  partly  because  many 
French  people  have  still  a  lingering  dread  of  some 
possible  disease  in  American  potatoes  and  do  not 
even  know  that  the  prohibition  against  them  has 
been  withdrawn,  they  have  not  yet  appeared  in 
any  appreciable  quantity  on  the  Paris  market. 

"Meanwhile  several  letters  have  been  received 
at  this  consulate  from  American  shippers  who  are 
prepared  to  offer  potatoes  to  French  importers. 
A  careful  investigation  of  the  situation  has  been 
made,  and  the  names  of  American  exporters  given 
to  leading  French  commission  merchants  and 
dealers  in  potatoes,  who  have  been  thus  enabled  to 
send  direct  propositions  to  the  parties  who  are 
seeking  a  market  for  American  potatoes  in  France. 

"The  principal  mart  of  the  wholesale  potato 
trade  in  Paris  is  at  the  great  Central  Markets  (Les 
Halles)  and  the  busj'  streets  in  their  mimediate 
neighborhood.  The  one  recognized  wholesale 
unit  or  weight  or  measure  for  potatoes  is  the  met- 
ric quintal  of  100  kilos,  equal  to  '■2^20  pounds  avoir- 
dupois, and  American  merchants  seeking  to  find  a 
market  here  should  base  their  propositions  on  that 
unit  instead  of  bushels,  bags,  or  barrels. 


THE  POTATO  497 

"From  the  statements  obtained  by  personal  in- 
quiry among  the  leading  merchants  in  that  hne  it 
appears  that  potatoes  are  now  bemg  dehvered  in 
wholesale  quantities  at  12  to  20  francs  per  100  kilos 
($2.31  to  $3.86  per  220  pounds),  according  to  qual- 
ity. One  firm  pays  as  high  as  22  francs  ($4.24)  for 
potatoes  of  the  highest  class,  but  this  is  exceptional 
and  supplies  only  special  and  limited  demands. 

"The  ruling  price  for  imported  potatoes  of  good 
average  quality  is  about  15  francs  ($2.89)  per  100 
kilos,  which  would  be  approximately  82  cents  per 
bushel  of  60  pounds.  The  same  potatoes  are  re- 
tailed in  the  groceries  and  provision  stores  through- 
out the  city  for  about  5  to  6  cents  per  kilo  ($1.33 
to  $1.60  per  bushel).  Genuine  red-skinned  po- 
tatoes are  preferred  here,  with  the  white  next, 
and  yellow  lowest  in  order  of  preference. 

"The  general  opinion  of  dealers  is  that  toward 
the  end  of  the  winter,  when  the  visible  European 
supply  is  more  nearly  exhausted,  prices  of  potatoes 
will  be  considerably  higher  than  now,  and  large 
(luantities  are  at  present  held  in  storage  at  the 
'Halles'  for  this  expected  advance.  New  po- 
tatoes from  Algiers  and  Tunis  reach  Paris  in 
February,  but  they  are  a  luxurv%  so  high  in  price 
and  so  limited  in  quantity  that  they  exercise  little 
influence  on  the  general  potato  market. 

"Owing  probably  to  the  fact  that  potatoes  have 
not  hitherto  figured  among  American  exports  to 
France,  they  are  not  included  among  the  articles 
covered  by  the  special  arrangement  of  March, 
1910,  between  the  United  States  and  French 
governments,  and  are  therefore  subject,  when 
imported  into  this  country,  to  the  maximimi  duty 
of  6  francs  per  100  kilos  (32  cents  per  bushel) 
during  the  months  of  March,  April,  and  May,  and 


498  THE  POTATO 

3  francs  per  100  kilos  (about  16  cents  per  bushel) 
if  imported  during  the  remaining  nine  months  of 
the  year.  Potatoes  from  Great  Britain,  Belgium, 
Germany,  Austria,  and  other  nations  which  enjoy 
the  minimum  duty  rates  with  France  pay  3  francs 
duty  per  100  kilos  (16  cents  per  bushel)  from 
March  1st  to  June  1st,  and  only  40  centimes  per  100 
kilos  (or  2  cents  per  bushel)  during  the  remainder 
of  the  year. 

"As  nearly  all  potatoes  are  imported  here  be- 
tween June  1st  and  March  1st,  the  American  prod- 
uct will  have  to  meet  this  discrimination  —  an 
excess  of  nearly  14  cents  duty  per  bushel  above  that 
paid  on  potatoes  from  European  countries  except 
Portugal. 

"Among  the  offers  which  have  been  received 
here  recently  is  one  from  an  American  shipper 
in  Maine  who  quotes  potatoes  of  high  quality 
grown  in  that  state  at  $1.75  per  sack  containing 
165  pounds,  delivered  at  an  American  seaport  on 
the  Atlantic  coast.  This,  converted  into  French 
equivalents,  would  be  about  11  francs  per  100 
kilos.  Adding  the  estimated  freight  charges  and 
import  duty,  cartage  and  handling,  would  bring 
the  cost  of  the  potatoes,  delivered  in  Paris,  up  to 
about  14.50  francs  (or  $2.80)  per  100  kilos.  As 
already  stated,  potatoes  at  wholesale  in  the  Paris 
market  range  from  12  to  20  francs  per  100  kilos, 
according  to  quality. 

"The  only  apparent  chance,  therefore,  is  for 
American  exporters  to  offer  potatoes  of  the  highest 
grades,  clean  and  free  from  leaves  and  stems,  such 
as  sell  here  now  for  from  17  to  20  francs  per  100 
kilos,  and  will  undoubtedly  be  still  dearer  in  late 
January  and  February.  On  account  of  the  change 
of  duty  from  March  1st,  potatoes  for  France  should 


THE  POTATO  499 

be  shipped,  if  possible,  so  as  to  arrive  before  that 
date. 

"For  the  Paris  market  it  would  be  preferable 
to  have  potatoes  in  sacks  containing  100  kilos  or 
50  kilos  each,  to  facilitate  valuations  and  accounts 
under  the  French  system.  This,  of  course,  is  not 
strictly  essential,  but  is  an  example  of  one  of  the 
wise  things  w4iich  exporters  of  an  unknown  article 
into  a  new  market  may  judiciously  do  to  'make 
things  easy  for  the  purchaser.' 

"  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  this  is  the  first 
opportunity  which  exporters  have  had  for  thirty- 
five  years  to  offer  American  potatoes  to  French 
consumers.  It  is  therefore  worth  while  this  winter, 
even  at  the  cost  of  some  trouble,  to  make  a  seri- 
ous effort  to  enter  the  market  here,  to  make  known 
the  high  quality  of  American  potatoes,  and  thus 
pave  the  way  for  an  even  more  prosperous  trade 
in  future  years. 

"There  will  be  a  large  demand  in  March  for 
seed  potatoes,  and  for  this  the  best  varieties  of 
American  origin,  free  from  all  taint  of  disease, 
should,  if  properly  presented,  be  especially  at- 
tractive to  French  dealers  and  farmers." 

The  senior  author  gives  an  account  of  his  visit 
to  Baron  Kricshcim  as  describing  a  typical  large 
estate  where  potatoes  are  an  important  crop. 
There  are  many  such  estates,  and  the  bulk  of  the 
crop  is  probably  grown  by  peasant  farmers. 

"I  am  very  proud  of  this  most  distinguished 
honor  of  an  American  agriculturist  coming  to  me 
for  knowledge  in  farming,"  said  the  big-bodied, 
massive-brained  Baron  when  he  read  the  letters 
of  introduction  of  the  senior  author  at  the  time  of 
his  visit. 


500  THE  POTATO 

The  fine  condition  in  which  the  grounds  and 
parks  around  the  castles  in  these  great  estates 
are  kept  is  a  marvel  to  an  American  farmer  who 
is  used  to  seeing  more  or  less  untidiness  about 
the  homes  of  some  of  our  largest  farmers. 

The  vocation  of  the  wealthy  German  farmer  is 
certainly  alluring  not  only  from  the  comforts  it 
brings  but  the  pleasure  that  must  come  with  the 
accomplishment  of  results  in  soil  building  and 
crop  production. 

The  farming  end  of  these  estates  is  laid  out  like  a 
manufacturing  establishment  —  the  crops,  fertiliz- 
ers, etc.,  all  planned  in  ten-year  cycles.  A  fom'-crop 
rotation  is  being  used,  but  a  map  is  made  showing 
just  what  each  field  is  to  do  for  a  ten-year  pei-iod. 

A  large  amount  of  vegetable  matter  in  the  form 
of  cover  crop  is  returned  to  the  soil;  and  prac- 
tically all  forage  crops  are  fed  on  the  farm,  the 
manures  carefully  kept  and  returned  to  the  land. 

Five  hundred  acres  on  the  Kriesheim  estate 
are  kept  for  permanent  pasture  for  horses,  dry 
cows  and  young  stock.  The  100  milking  dairy 
cows  are  kept  in  barns  constantly  and  fed  green 
cut  grass,  beet  tops,  clover  hay,  etc. 

The  land  is  light,  sandy  loam,  but  is  valued  at 
$125  an  acre  and  rents  for  $3  an  acre  annually. 

The  farm  hands  get  35  cents  a  day  —  with 
cabin,  garden  and  900  pounds  of  grain. 

The  potatoes  have  been  developed  for  years 
for  high  percentage  of  starch,  this  quality  being 
especially  desired  in  the  manufacture  of  starch 
and  alcohol.  They  are  coarse  and  low  in  quality 
as  compared  with  British  or  French  varieties. 

On  the  place  potatoes  have  been  grown  for 
fifty  years  without  spraying,  but  this  year  (1910) 
the  blight  was  a  serious  menace  to  the  crop. 


THE  POTATO  501 

After  the  land  is  prepared  for  planting  potatoes, 
the  furrows  and  lioles  for  the  potatoes  are  opened 
lip  with  a  wheeled  inij^lenient  that  opens  four  fur- 
rows. A  spade-like  atfair  on  the  wheel  makes  a 
hole  four  to  five  inches  deep,  and  the  potatoes  are 
dropped  in  this. 

The  rows  are  made  twenty-six  inches  apart  and 
the  seed  is  dropped  eighteen  inches  apart  in  the  row. 

The  seed  is  then  covered  by  a  horse-drawn 
*'coverer"  consisting  of  two  disks,  one  working  on 
either  side  of  the  row. 

This  system  of  planting  —  18  x  26  inches  —  gives 
the  greatest  amount  of  room  for  roots  possible 
with  close  planting.  Planting  10  x  27  makes  the 
roots  of  one  plant  encroach  on  those  of  its  neigh- 
bors. 

The  entire  crop  goes  to  the  starch  factory,  so 
there  is  no  waste  —  all  cut,  green  or  rough  tubers 
go  in.  The  tubers  are  harvested  by  hand  and 
handled  in  bulk. 

A  narrow  gauge  railroad  track  is  run  to  the  po- 
tato field  to  be  used  in  handling  the  crop.  These 
tracks  are  in  sections  and  can  be  moved  to  any 
part  of  the  farm.     The  cars  are  pushed  by  hand. 

The  seed  for  next  season's  planting  is  saved 
from  the  main  crop. 

Whole  seed  is  always  planted,  but  small  seed  is 
used  so  that  only  about  1,000  pounds  per  acre 
are  required. 

That  part  of  the  crop  used  for  table  consump- 
tion is  largely  grown  on  small  holdings,  while  the 
starch  and  other  factories  are  supplied  from  the 
large  estates. 

Travelers  in  Europe  complain  of  the  potatoes 
served  at  the  hotels  lacking  in  flavor  and  ((uality. 
They  are  mostly  served  boiled  or  pared  and  are 


502  THE  POTATO 

often  very  small  —  about  the  size  of  a  walnut 
with  the  hull  on. 

The  potato  is  a  favorite  ingredient  for  soups  and 
salads,  a  special  soggy  potato  that  does  not  cook 
"'  mealy"  being  grown  for  salad  making.  The  Pabst 
Brewing  Company  of  Milwaukee,  Wis.,  imports 
some  of  these  every  year  for  their  customers.  These 
have  been  grown  at  Mt.  Sopris  Farm.  The  potato  is 
thin-skinned,  yellow,  and  often  seven  or  eight  inclies 
long,  tapering  at  both  ends.  It  is  about  an  inch 
in  diameter,  very  waxy  and  holds  its  form  well. 

A  great  may  Russians  are  imported  into  Ger- 
many during  potato  harvest.  They  work  for  low 
wages,  but  are  required  to  return  to  Russia  after 
the  harvest  season.  The  German  laws  rigidly  pro- 
tect local  farm  labor. 

The  following  about  the  manufacture  of  potato 
flour  in  Europe  is  from  the  reports  of  the  following 
representatives  of  the  Government  of  the  United 
States  —  Consul-General  A.  M.  Thackara,  Berlin, 
Germany,  and  Vice-Consul  D.  P.  De  Young, 
Amsterdam,  Netherlands : 

*'The  great  bulk  of  the  so-called  potato  flour 
(kartoffelmehl)  that  is  sold  at  retail  in  the  gi'o- 
ceries  of  Germany  for  cooking  purposes  is  simply 
fine  ground  and  sifted  potato  starch.  There  is, 
however,  a  flour  obtained  by  grinding  and  bolting 
dried  potatoes  that  is  a  comparatively  new  product. 

"In  1901,  when  the  potato  crop  of  the  country' 
reached  the  enormous  total  of  53,682,010  short 
tons,  efforts  were  made  to  discover  practical  and 
economical  methods  of  preserving  the  potatoes, 
so  that  the  surplus  could  be  stored  and  utilized 
in  supplying  future  demands.  Prizes  were  of- 
fered and  a  number  of  processes  were  submitted. 


THE  POTATO  503 

in  the  more  important  of  which  the  potatoes  are 
dried  by  steam,  forming  what  are  called  "kartof- 
felfiocken,"  or  potato  flakes,  which  can  be  used 
for  feeding  stock,  for  distilling  alcohol,  for  making 
starch,  and  for  other  purposes  for  which  potatoes 
are  used,  or  they  can  be  ground  and  bolted  for 
human  consumption. 

"In  the  Tatosin  process  for  the  production  of 
flakes,  the  raw  potatoes  are  washed  in  a  washing 
machine  commonly  used  in  distilleries  or  starch 
factories,  and  then  conveyed  by  an  elevator  to  a 
steamer  erected  over  the  drying  apparatus,  where 
they  are  cooked  by  means  of  low-pressure  steam, 
as  if  the  potatoes  were  to  be  used  for  feeding  stock. 
The  drying  apparatus  proper  consists  of  two 
smooth,  hollow,  cast-iron  revolving  drums  about 
four  feet  long  and  two  feet  in  diameter,  each  with 
a  clearance  of  about  0.039  inch.  The  drums  are 
supported  upon  a  cast-iron  framework,  on  the  top 
of  which  there  is  an  iron  hopper  fitted  at  the  bot- 
tom with  emasculators,  or  crushers.  The  drums 
are  heated  by  steam  of  5.5  to  6  atmospheres  led 
through  a  pipe  passing  through  their  axes.  The 
interiors  of  the  drums  are  ridged  longitudinally. 
Condensed  water  is  taken  from  the  drums  by  two 
small  pipes  and  returned  to  the  boilers. 

"The  potatoes  after  being  steamed  are  allowed 
to  fall  by  gravity  into  the  hoppers  and  through 
the  emasculators,  where  they  are  reduced  to  pulp, 
and  in  this  shape  are  forced  on  to  the  drying  drum. 
The  drums  turn  in  opposite  directions  at  five 
revolutions  a  minute.  The  heat  drives  off  the 
moisture  of  the  potato  pulp,  leaving  a  firm  mass  that 
is  scraped  off  by  means  of  knives  set  parallel  to 
the  main  axes  of  the  drums.  The  dried  mass  falls 
into    a    spiral    transporter   fitted    with    revolving 


504  THE  POTATO 

arms,  where  it  is  broken  into  flakes  and  conveyed 
to  the  packing  room. 

"In  other  processes  of  preserving  potatoes  used 
in  Germany  the  tubers  are  cut  into  disks  or  small 
pieces  and  dried  by  hot  air.  The  method  described, 
however,  is  that  most  in  use.  At  present  there  are 
436  plants  established  in  Germany  for  drying  pota- 
toes, with  an  estimated  production  annually  of 
110,230  to  165,345  short  tons,  or  3,674,000  to 
5,511,500  bushels.  Of  the  above  plants,  350  are  for 
the  production  of  potato  flakes,  and  in  86  plants 
the  potatoes  are  dried  by  the  hot-air  processes. 

*'The  prices  of  potato  flakes  vary  from  14  to 
16  pfennigs  (3.3  to  3.8  cents)  per  kilo  (2.2  pounds). 
The  estimated  cost  of  the  production  of  the  flakes 
is  6.30  marks  ($1.50)  per  50  kilos  (110.2  pounds). 

"In  the  production  of  ground  potato  flour  the 
potato  flakes  are  ground  and  bolted.  There  are 
but  few  concerns  that  manufacture  the  flour,  each 
having  its  own  process.  The  flour  is  a  yellowish 
white  product,  rich  in  carbohydrates.  According 
to  experiments  made  by  the  '  Institut  f lir  Garungs- 
Gewerbe'  (Institute  for  the  Fermentation  In- 
dustry) in  Berlin,  the  principal  constituents  of  the 
flour  are:  Water,  10.69  per  cent.;  protein,  6.59 
per  cent.;  fatty  substances,  0.23  per  cent.;  non- 
nitrogenous  substances,  78.73  per  cent.;  raw  fibre, 
1.1  per  cent,  and  ashes,  2.58  per  cent. 

"The  flour  is  used  principally  by  bakers  for 
adding  to  rye  and  wheat  flour  in  making  bread. 
The  proportion  for  wheat  bread  is  5  to  10  per 
cent,  of  the  ground  potato  flour,  and  for  rye  bread 
the  amount  can  be  increased  to  15  per  cent.  It  is 
claimed  that  the  addition  of  the  ground  potato 
flour  to  the  rye  or  wheat  flour  gives  the  bread  a 
good  flavor,  makes  it  more  digestible,  and  keeps  it 


THE  POTATO 


50' 


fresh  for  a  comparatively  long  time.  It  is  also 
used  to  a  slight  extent  in  lliickening  soups  and 
sauces 

"There  are  no  statistics  available  that  would 
indicate  the  annual  consumpLion  of  ground  potat(j 
flour  in  Germ.any,  but  as  an  industry  the  manu- 
facture of  the  flour  has  not  attained  large  pro- 
portions. It  is  sold  i)rincipally  to  bakers.  It  is 
known  to  the  trade  as  'Walzmehl,'  'KartofTcl 
Walzmehl'  'Patent  Walzmehl,'  and  'Fiddi- 
chower  AValzmehl.'  The  prices  vary  according 
to  the  potato  crop  and  the  qualitv,  and  range  from 
$4.7G  to  $7.14  per  100  kilos  ('220.4G  pounds). 

"During  the  last  sixty  years  potato  farming  has 
assumed  large  proportions  in  the  Netherlands, 
due  in  great  measure  to  the  development  of  the 
potato-flour  industry.  In  1860  the  total  potato 
area  was  273,318  acres,  while  in  1908  there  were 
395,089  acres.  The  following  table  shows  the  pro- 
duction by  provinces  in  1908  and  the  area  of 
land  devoted  to  the  industrv: 


Provinces 


Drenthe 

Friesland 

Gelderland  ... 

Groningen 

Liinburg 

North  lirubant 
North  Holland 

Overyssel 

South  Holland. 

Utrecht 

Zeeland 

Total.... 


Production 

Area 

Percentage  of 
tillable  area 

Bushels 

Acres 

13,507,634 

40,515 

34.7 

1^2,459,213 

40,192 

38.1 

11,729,464 

65,609 

22.6 

18,565,776 

48,815 

15.1 

4,960,600 

30,562 

13.7 

9,634,745 

55,784 

15.2 

2,456,606 

11,209 

11.4 

9,959,664 

40,031 

34.7 

6,294,550 

26,497 

18  0 

1,076.S57 

7,853 

19.7 

6,093.868 

28,022 

11.3 

96,798,977 

395,089 

50G  THE  POTATO 

"Seventy-four  per  cent,  of  the  potato  crop  is 
used  for  food  and  seed  and  the  remainder  supplies 
the  raw  material  for  manufacturing  purposes. 
Three  fourths  of  the  manufacturing  is  done  in 
the  province  of  Groningen,  and  the  remainder  is 
confined  to  three  other  provinces.  Of  the  48,815 
acres  of  potatoes  in  Groningen,  over  37,000  were 
planted  for  industrial  purposes. 

"The  scientific  fertilization  of  the  soil  has  be- 
come a  very  important  feature  of  the  potato  in- 
dustry in  Groningen.  Sometimes  $32  to  $50 
worth  of  fertilizer  is  scattered  on  one  hectare 
(2.471  acres)  of  ground.  The  land  is  valued  at 
fully  $500  per  acre  and  rents  at  $22.50  per  acre 
per  year.  The  fertilizers  consist  of  about  200 
Idlos  of  Chile  saltpetre  and  700  kilos  of  super- 
phosphates to  the  hectare.  Potatoes  raised  on  this 
highly  fertilized  soil  are  not  very  edible,  being 
cultivated  principally  for  their  industrial  prop- 
erties. There  is  a  sentiment  in  favor  of  using 
the  factor}^  waste  for  fertilizing,  but  it  has  not 
proved  a  success  as  yet. 

"The  methods  of  planting,  cultivating,  and 
harvesting  potatoes  have  not  advanced  as  they 
should.  Several  picking  machines  have  been 
tried  of  late,  but  not  to  the  satisfaction  of  the 
planters.  They  want  a  machine  that  will  not 
only  dig  the  potatoes  out  of  the  ground,  but  clean 
off  the  dirt  and  empty  them  into  a  sack  as  well.  A 
potato  digger  that  merely  uproots  the  potatoes, 
leaving  them  scattered  over  the  ground  to  be 
picked  up  and  sacked  by  hand,  saves  little  labor, 
as  they  still  have  to  be  cleaned,  sacked,  and  often 
shaken  loose  from  the  roots  and  vines. 

"In  the  cooperative  potato  producing  and  manu- 
facturing enterprises  the  packing  is  usually  let  to 


THE  POTATO  507 

contractors  at  from  $0.09  to  $0.10  per  row  of  140 
meters  (459  feet).  That  includes  stacking  them 
in  piles  and  covering  them  with  straw.  The  lal)or- 
ers  are  also  given  free  potatoes  during  the  picking 
season.  Sometimes  these  contractors  are  the 
heads  of  large  families,  but  there  are  also  contrac- 
tors who  sublet  to  individual  workmen.  They 
usually  pay  the  pickers  $0.00  per  row.  One  per- 
son is  able  to  pick  seven  of  these  rows  per  day  of 
seven  hours.  The  whole  family  usually  joins  in 
the  work,  camping  out  on  the  potato  field  during 
the  season.  Independent  farmers  often  pick  their 
own  crops. 

"A  great  impetus  to  the  potato-flour  industry 
was  given  by  the  cooperative  method  introduced 
during  the  last  two  decades.  In  fact  the  intro- 
duction of  that  system  has  really  joined  the  opera- 
tion of  producing  raw  materials  and  manufactur- 
ing them  into  potato  flour.  It  led  to  the  estab- 
lishment of  cooperative  experiment  stations  whose 
object  it  is  to  study  the  scientific  culture  and 
treatment  of  potatoes  for  industrial  purposes  in 
all  practical  phases  of  the  industry.  Previously 
there  was  no  organization  between  planter  and 
manufacturer,  which  frequently  proved  disastrous 
to  both. 

"The  first  step  toward  organization  was  taken 
in  1890  by  several  of  the  large  manufacturers, 
but  arrangements  were  not  completed  until  1900, 
owing  to  the  lateness  of  some  in  joining.  The 
factories  then  announced  uniform  prices  for  raw 
potatoes  and  the  farmers  liad  to  sell  on  their  terms. 
The  latter  retaliated  by  organizing  cooperative 
producing  societies,  which  soon  developed  into 
manufacturing  institutions  as  well.  There  are 
therefore  two  systems  of  operating,  one  in  which 


508  THE  POTATO 

the  farmers  cooperate  to  the  extent  of  owning 
shares  in  the  factory  and  the  other  in  which  the 
trading  is  independent  and  speculative. 

"The  different  cooperative  plants  are  of  course 
still  competitive  in  respect  to  each  other.  They 
have  their  own  trademarks,  they  sell  indepen- 
dently through  domestic  and  foreign  agents,  and 
are  keen  rivals  in  the  production  of  superior  qual- 
ities. Of  the  thirty-four  potato-flour  factories  in 
the  Veenkolonien,  eleven  are  cooperative.  The 
largest  independent  factorj^  has  a  capital  of 
$600,000  and  the  buildings  and  machinery  are  val- 
ued at  $100,000.  This  factory  has  small  branches 
in  various  sections  of  Groningen.  Some  of 
these  mills  have  a  capacity  for  grinding  over 
28,000  bushels  in  twenty-four  hours;  the  smallest, 
about  one  fourth  of  that  amount.  Three  fifths 
of  the  total  production  of  potato  flour  of  the  coun- 
try is  ground  in  independent  mills.  The  demand 
for  Dutch  potato  flour  is  always  greater  than  the 
supply. 

"The  season  for  manufacturing  potato  flour  is 
usually  about  ten  weeks  in  duration  —  from  the 
middle  of  September  to  the  last  of  November. 
The  fine  waterway  system  of  Groningen  greatly 
expedites  the  delivery  of  potatoes,  naturally 
shortening  the  season,  and  in  fact  accelerating 
the  industry.  The  great  network  of  canals  and 
other  waterways  makes  it  possible  to  transport 
the  potatoes  directly  from  the  field  to  the  factory, 
the  latter  always  being  on  canals  that  accommo- 
date forty  to  100  ton  vessels.  Potatoes  are  sent 
in  shiploads  of  2,000  to  3,000  bushels  each.  Fre- 
quently these  ships  are  owned  by  the  factories, 
though  sometimes  by  private  individuals  or  trans- 
portation companies. 


THE  rOTATO  509 

"It  Is  difficult  to  set  an  exact  value  on  the  po- 
tato used  In  the  potato-flour  industry.  Some 
factories  buy  them  by  the  hectolitre  {'■Z.8S7 
bushels)  without  paying  any  attention  to  the 
quality,  while  others  grade  them  according  to  the 
amount  of  starch  contained.  However,  it  Is 
estimated  that  at  an  average  of  $0.34  per  hec- 
tolitre the  value  of  potatoes  ground  Into  flour  In 
one  season  would  be  $3,400,000.  Calculating 
roughly,  one  hectolitre  of  potatoes  produces 
eleven  kilos  of  flour  (8.54  pounds  to  the  bushel). 
A  conservative  estimate  of  the  total  production 
of  potato  flour  In  the  Netherlands  for  one  season  Is 
110,000  metric  tons  of  2,204.6  pounds.  The  price 
per  bag  of  100  kilos  (220.46  pounds)  has  varied  in 
the  last  few  years  from  $3.60  to  $5.20.  An  average 
price  of  $4.40  per  bag  would  bring  the  total  value 
of  the  manufactured  product  up  to  $4,840,000  per 
season,  $1,440,000  more  than  the  cost  of  the  raw 
potatoes. 

"It  would  seem  bad  business  for  farmers  to 
pay  a  rent  of  $122.50  per  acre,  fertilize  to  the  ex- 
tent of  $10  or  $15,  and  sell  380  bushels  of  potatoes 
per  acre  at  $0.12  to  $0.15  per  bushel,  but  it  should 
be  understood  that  the  most  valuable  land,  highly 
fertilized,  produces  much  more  than  the  average. 

"The  potato  flour  exported  from  the  Nether- 
lands goes  to  Great  Britain,  Spain,  Belgium, 
Italy,  the  free  port  of  Hamburg,  Denmark,  and 
the  United  States  and  Canada.  The  United 
States  Imported  $38,000  worth  of  dextrin  and 
potato  flour  from  the  Netherlands  in  1910.  Eng- 
land and  Belgium  are  perhaps  the  best  customers. 
Exports  have  grown  from  35,933  metric  tons  In 
1898  to  64,000  tons  In  1909. 

*' There  are    altogether  thirty-two  potato-flour 


510  THE  POTATO 

factories  in  the  Netherlands,  of  which  twenty-four 
are  in  the  Province  of  Groningen,  two  in  Fries- 
land,  four  in  Drenthe,  and  two  in  Overyssel.  In 
addition  to  this  there  are  several  small  factories 
producing  only  dextrin  or  glucose.  The  total 
number  of  men  employed  in  the  works  is  nearly 
3,000.  Most  of  the  factories  are  situated  on  deep 
canals  in  the  reclaimed  swamps  of  the  Veenko- 
lonien,  and  the  tubers  are  transferred  from  the 
boats  direct  to  the  mill. 

*'A  disagreeable  feature  of  the  potato-flour  in- 
dustry in  the  Veenkolonien  is  the  waste  thrown 
off  and  the  consequent  pollution  of  the  canal 
water.  Just  after  the  milling  season  the  water  is 
so  bad  that  ignitible  gases  evaporate  from  it. 
Often  a  lighted  match  thrown  into  the  canal  will 
cause  an  apparent  blaze.  The  economic  loss 
resulting  from  this  waste  is  in  the  eyes  of  the 
planters  of  that  region  a  serious  matter.  In  all 
it  is  estimated  that  the  wasted  material  is  worth 
$666,432  per  year. 

"In  connection  with  the  potato-flour  industry 
there  are  seven  dextrin  factories  in  the  northern 
part  of  the  country  and  two  in  the  province  of 
Limburg.  Dextrin  is  used  chiefly  for  sizing  pur- 
poses in  textile  plants.  As  a  consequence,  the 
demand  for  that  product  depends  largely  upon  the 
cotton  and  linen  industries.  While  there  is  a 
flourishing  cotton  industry  in  Overyssel,  it  is  not 
sufficient  to  consume  all  the  dextrin  produced 
here,  the  remainder  being  shipped  to  Great  Brit- 
ain, United  States,  Spain,  Italy,  and  Belgium. 
However,  the  exports  in  this  line  have  decreased 
of  late  years,  owing  to  both  the  increased  price 
of  the  dextrin  and  higher  import  duties  in  many 
foreign  countries. 


THE  POTATO  511 

"The  production  of  glucose  from  potatoes  in 
the  Netherlands  dates  from  187.5,  since  which 
time  it  has  not  only  greatly  increased  but  the 
quality  has  been  improved.  Eleven  factories, 
some  combined  with  potato-flour  establishments 
and  others  working  independently,  produce  glu- 
cose from  potatoes  in  both  the  solid  and  liquid 
state.  From  a  total  production  of  9, GOO  metric 
tons  in  1890  it  has  grown  to  20,000  tons  in  1908. 
Almost  all  of  this  glucose  is  consumed  in  the 
Netherlands,  especially  in  confectioneries  and 
cake  and  jam  factories.  It  is  inipossible  to  build 
up  an  export  trade  in  this  article,  owing  to  the 
high  import  duties  in  other  countries  and  the 
strong  competition  it  encounters  especially  from 
American  glucose  manufactured  from  corn.  There 
is  a  constant  fear  of  overproduction  in  this  article. 
However,  the  confectionery  industry  in  the  Neth- 
erlands is  so  thriving  that  domestic  consumption 
may  keep  pace  with  the  supply  for  a  long  time. 
The  high  excise  tax  on  the  article  when  consumed 
in  the  country  —  3.28  cents  per  pound,  American 
currency  —  is  a  great  bar  to  its  use.  The  form 
in  which  it  will  find  its  most  successful  outlet, 
therefore,  is  in  a  manufactured  state,  such  as 
cookies,  candies,  and  other  confectioneries,  as 
the  excise  is  withdrawn  from  such  articles  if  actu- 
ally exported  to  another  country.  It  is  evidently 
exported  in  that  form." 

"Intensive  cultivation"  is  the  lesson  to  be 
learned  from  the  European  potato  grower. 


CHAPTER  XLI 

HISTORY 

IN  COMMON  with  many  other  food  plants, 
the  early  history  of  the  potato  does  not  appear 
to  be  especiallj^  authentic;  but  there  are 
some  points  on  which  most  writers  agree. 

The  potato  {Solarium  tuberosum)  —  French, 
pomme  de  terre;  German,  kartoffel;  Dutch,  aarap- 
pel;  Danish,  jordepeeren:  Italian,  patata;  Spanish, 
patatas;  American  slang,  spuds,  murphies;  Eng- 
lish slang,  tatties  —  belongs  to  the  same  family  as 
tobacco,  belladonna,  tomato,  egg  plant,  and  cap- 
sicum. There  are  1,600  species  in  the  family,  and 
but  six  bear  tubers.  The  wild  potato  produces 
seed  balls  from  the  flowers,  and  this  is  true  now  of 
some  vines  in  the  valleys  of  the  western  slope  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains.  The  potato  is  a  native  of 
mountain  valleys  in  South  America  very  similar  to, 
if  not  identical  with,  conditions  in  Colorado  and 
southern  Idaho.  In  its  native  home  it  grows  at 
an  altitude  of  4,000  to  6,000  feet.  The  potato  was 
probably  carried  to  Spain  by  returning  explorers 
in  the  sixteenth  century.  It  was  in  turn  taken  to 
Florida  by  other  Spanish  explorers,  from  there  to 
Virginia,  and  from  that  colony  to  the  continent  of 
Europe. 

It  is  reported  that  when  the  Spanish  discovered 
South  America  —  Chile  and  Peru  —  they  found 
the  potato  an  important  article  of  food. 

In   "Pictorial   Practical   Potato   Growing,"   by 

512 


THE  POTATO  513 

Walter  P.  Wright  and  Edward  J.  Casllo,  and  pul)- 
lished  by  Casscl  &  Company,  Limited,  London,  is 
the  following: 

"Italy  would  seem  to  be  the  first  country  to 
give  special  attention  to  the  newcomer,  an  Italian 
named  Cardano  being  early  associated  with  it. 
The  year  1586  is  generally  admitted  to  be  the  date 
of  introduction  to  Great  Britain,  Sir  Thomas 
Herriot,  a  companion  to  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  being 
its  introducer.  Some  authorities  are  inclined  to 
give  the  credit  of  its  introduction  into  Britain  to 
Admiral  Drake,  who  is  stated  to  have  sent  planters 
of  Virginia  especially  to  bring  over  the  tubers. 

"Be  that  as  it  may,  it  seems  certain  that  the 
first  potatoes  known  in  Great  Britain  came  from 
Virginia,  and  it  is  equally  certain  that  they  were 
first  planted  in  Ireland,  near  Cork.  Switzerland, 
France,  and  Germany  were  the  next  countries  to 
welcome  Solanum  tuberosum,  but  nowhere  w^as 
it  regarded  as  of  particularly  high  value  for  food. 
The  famous  French  botanist,  Olivier  de  Serres, 
deemed  it  worthy  of  a  special  chapter  in  a  book  he 
])ublished  in  IGOO.  To  another  Frenchman,  JNI. 
Fraizier,  the  tuber  owes  its  popular  name,  it  having 
first  been  called  pomme  de  terre  —  apple  of  the 
earth  —  in  a  book  dealing  with  that  gentleman's 
voyage  to  the  coasts  of  Chile.  This  was  in  171G. 
To  a  third  Frenchman,  M.  Parmentier,  the  potato 
owes  its  popularization  as  an  article  of  human  food, 
though  the  statement  that  Parmentier  had  any- 
thing to  do  with  its  introduction  is  erroneous. 
Louis  XVI  seconded  the  efforts  of  Parmentier 
by  ordering  a  large  tract  of  land  to  be  planted 
with  potatoes,  and  himself  wearing  a  fiower  of  the 
plant  in  his  buttonhole. 


514  THE  POTATO 

"In  England  the  potato  at  first  met  with  Httle 
favor,  its  relationship  to  the  deadly  nightshade 
causing  it  to  be  regarded  with  suspicion.  Sir 
Walter  Raleigh  endeavored  to  interest  Queen 
Elizabeth  in  the  newcomer,  and  even  succeeded  to 
the  extent  of  getting  a  dish  of  cooked  tubers 
placed  on  the  royal  table.  Courtesy  forbade  the 
guests  to  refuse  to  partake  of  the  new  dish,  but 
their  dishke  was  so  obvious,  and  so  assiduously 
did  they  circulate  tales  regarding  the  poisonous 
nature  of  the  tubers,  that  we  do  not  read  of  the 
experiment  being  repeated.  In  Ireland  the  potato 
met  with  a  better  reception,  and  its  culture  was 
far  advanced  and  understood  in  that  country  be- 
fore England  took  the  matter  seriously  in  hand. 
Not  until  1663  do  we  read  of  potato  culture  be- 
coming at  all  general  in  England,  but  in  that  year 
it  received  a  great  impetus,  owing  to  the  efforts  of 
the  Royal  Society,  which  were  prompted,  it  is  said, 
by  a  recognition  of  the  food  value  of  the  tubers  in 
time  of  famine. 

"The  original  tubers  would  appear  to  have  been 
round,  and  about  the  size  of  a  large  walnut. 
Herriot  called  the  potato  Openwak,  and  Gerarde, 
who  pictured  the  plant  in  his  famous  'Herbal'  in 
1597,  gave  it  the  scientific  name  of  Bata  Virginia. 
To  Gaspard  Bauhin,  a  celebrated  botanist  of 
Basle,  belongs  the  credit  of  giving  the  plant  its 
present  and  universally  recognized  scientific  name, 
Solanum  tuberosum,.  This  was  about  1590,  and  it 
does  not  appear  that  the  name  then  bestowed 
has  ever  been  disputed.  There  are  at  least  six 
tuber-bearing  species  of  Solanum,  but  in  the 
opinion  of  Mr.  J.  G.  Baker,  the  famous  Kew  botan- 
ist, all  the  varieties  in  cultivation  have  originated 
from  one  species  —  *S.  tuberosum. 


THE  POTATO  515 

"When  once  the  real  value  of  the  potato  was 
recognized  its  progress  into  every  country  of  Eu- 
rope seems  to  have  been  very  rapid,  though  Scot- 
land seems  to  have  disregarded  it  until  the  middle 
of  the  eighteenth  century,  when  famine  and  great 
destitution  forced  the  claims  of  the  new  improved 
tuber  upon  the  Scottish  farmers.  So  rapidly  did 
it  grow  in  popularity  that  in  1747  we  read  of  700 
bushels  of  potatoes  being  exported  from  Carolina, 
while  in  1840,  the  year  of  the  potato's  first  ap- 
pearance in  the  United  States  census,  the  crop  is 
given  as  108,298,060  bushels. 

"The  first  real  check  to  potato  cultivation  was 
received  in  1842,  when  the  now  well-known  and 
dreaded  potato  disease,  Phytophthora  infestans, 
(late  blight)  made  its  appearance  in  Germany. 
Soon  after  this  it  was  recorded  from  Canada  and 
the  United  States;  in  1845  the  Isle  of  Wight,  and 
thence  England,  felt  its  presence;  and  by  1846  it 
was  known  almost  all  over  Europe.  A  famine  in 
Ireland  followed,  and  for  a  while  it  looked  as 
though  the  potato  was  threatened  with  extinction. 
Fortunately,  however,  the  efficacy  of  sulphate  of 
copper  and  lime  in  combating  the  disease  was  dis- 
covered, and  this,  under  the  name  of  Bordeaux 
mixture,  has  greatly  helped  to  preserve  the  potato 
as  we  know  it." 

Mr.  Arthur  W.  Sutton,  Reading,  England,  in  a 
lecture  before  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society, 
presents  the  following  very  interesting  facts: 

**  Concerning  the  introduction  of  the  potato  into 
England,  the  following  extract  from  'London's 
Encyclopedia,  published  in  1836,  is  of  sufficient 
importance  to  find  a  place  in  any  paper  on  po- 


516  THE  POTATO 

tatoes :  *  It  appears  probable  that  the  potatoe  was 
first  brought  into  Europe  from  the  mountahi- 
ous  parts  of  South  America  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Quito,  where  they  were  called  papas, 
to  Spain,  early  in  the  sixteenth  century.  From 
Spain,  where  they  were  called  vattatas,  they  found 
their  w^ay  to  Italy,  and  there  received  the  same 
name  as  the  truffle,  taratoufli.  From  Italy  they 
went  to  Vienna,  through  the  Governor  of  Mons  in 
Hainbault,  who  sent  some  to  Clusius  in  1598.  To 
England  the  potatoe  found  its  way  from  North 
America,  being  brought  from  Virginia  by  the 
colonists  sent  out  by  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  in  1584, 
and  who  returned  in  July,  1586,  and  "  probably," 
says  Sir  Joseph  Banks  "brought  with  them  the 
potatoe."  Gerarde  in  his  "Herbal,"  published  in 
1597,  gives  a  figure  of  the  potatoe  under  the  name  of 
potatoe  of  Virginia,  whence,  he  says,  he  received 
the  roots;  and  this  appellation  it  appears  to  have 
retained,  in  order  to  distinguish  it  from  the  bat- 
tatas,  or  sweet  potatoe  {Convolvulus  hattatas) 
till  the  year  1640,  if  not  longer.  Gough  says  the 
potatoe  was  first  planted  by  Sir  Walter  Raleigh 
on  his  estate  of  Youghall,  near  Cork,  and  that  they 
were  soon  after  carried  into  Lancashire.  Gerarde 
and  Parkinson,  however,  mention  them  as  deli- 
cacies for  the  confectioner  and  not  as  common 
food.  Even  so  late  as  Bradley's  time  (1716,  in 
his  "Historia  Plantarum  Succulentarum")  they 
are  spoken  of  as  inferior  to  skirrets  and  radishes. 
'*  'The  use  of  potatoes,  however,  became  more 
and  more  knovv^n  after  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth 
century  and  has  greatly  increased  in  all  parts  of 
Britain  within  the  last  thirty  years.  It  is  also 
very  general  in  Holland  and  many  parts  of  France 
and  Germany  and  is  increasing  rapidly  in  Russia. 


THE  POTATO  517 

In  Spain  and  the  East  and  West  Indies  they  are 
not  much  cullivated,  owing  to  the  heat  of  the 
chmate;  but  in  all  the  temperate  parts  of  North 
America,  Australasia,  and  South  America  they 
are  grown  by  the  colonists.  In  China  they  are 
cultivated,  but  not  extensively,  owing  to  the  slow 
progress  which  everything  new  makes  in  that 
country.  Indeed,  no  root  hitherto  discovered  is 
so  well  adapted  for  universal  use  as  the  tubers  of 
the  potatoe;  for,  having  no  peculiarity  of  taste,  and 
consisting  cniefiy  of  starch,  their  farina  is  nearly 
the  same  as  that  of  grain.  Hence,  w  ith  the  flower 
of  potatoes,  puddings  and  such  preparations  as 
do  not  call  the  gluten  of  wheat  flower  into  action, 
may  be  made  equal  to  those  of  millet  or  rice,  and 
excellent  bread  with  a  moderate  proportion  of 
good  wheat  flower.  Potatoe  starch,  independently 
of  its  use  in  the  laundry  and  as  a  hair  powder,  is 
considered  an  equally  delicate  food  as  sago  or 
arrow-root.  As  starch  and  sugar  are  so  nearly  the 
same  that  the  former  is  easily  converted  into  the 
latter,  the  potatoe  yields  a  spirit  equal  to  that 
of  malt  by  distillation  and  a  wine  or  beer  by  the 
fermentative  process.' 

"  Monsieur  Henri  L.  de  Vilmorin,  in  his  lecture  on 
the  best  kinds  of  potato,  read  before  the  Agricul- 
tural Society  of  Paris  on  January  30,  1888,  men- 
tions that  toward  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  cent urv, 
the  potato  was  introduced  directly  into  England, 
where  it  rapidly  obtained  a  position  among  the 
common  vegetables  of  the  garden.  On  the  c(mi- 
tinent,  however,  its  progress  was  attended  with 
greater  difliculty.  The  prejudices  which  existed 
against  its  general  use  were,  however,  combated 
with  energy  by  certain  men  devoted  lo  the  ])ublic 
welfare,  such  as  Duhamel  du  Monceau,  Inspec- 


518  THE  POTATO 

tor-General  of  Naval  Construction;  Mgr.  du  Bar- 
ral,  Bishop  of  Castres,  and  the  Minister  Turgot 
himself.  It  was  reserved,  however,  to  Monsieur 
Parmentier  to  succeed  where  so  many  able  men 
had  failed,  and  his  success  was  due  above  all  things 
to  his  perseverance  and  the  tact  with  which  he 
used  his  intimate  knowledge  of  the  character  of 
les  Parisiens.  Instead  of  trying  to  convince  them 
by  argument,  he  undertook,  with  the  consent  of 
the  King,  Louis  XVI,  to  plant  potatoes  on  the 
plain  of  Les  Sablons,  and,  surrounding  his  experi- 
ments with  an  air  of  mystery,  he  had  the  plot 
guarded  by  a  cordon  of  troops,  and  thus  succeeded 
in  adding  to  the  curiosity  of  the  population.  He 
then  invited  a  number  of  scientific  and  influential 
men  to  a  banquet  where  every  dish  was  either  com- 
posed chiefly  of  potatoes,  or  was  served  up  with 
potatoes  as  an  accompaniment.  This  proved  the 
most  eloquent  demonstration  possible  of  the  culi- 
nary properties  of  the  new  vegetable,  and  his 
cause  was  gained.  During  the  end  of  the  eigh- 
teenth century  and  the  early  years  of  the  nine- 
teenth century  the  potato  made  great  progress, 
and  when,  in  1813,  the  Central  Society  of  Agricul- 
ture undertook  to  provide,  as  a  basis  for  study  of 
the  culture  of  the  potato,  a  collection  of  the  varie- 
ties then  in  use  throughout  the  French  Empire,  it 
brought  together  no  less  than  115  to  120  dif- 
ferent kinds. 

"Count  Rumford  in  the  middle  of  the  last  cen- 
tury tells  of  the  trouble  he  experienced  in  persuad- 
ing the  people  of  Munich  to  use  the  potato  as  food, 
even  in  a  time  of  great  scarcity.  Only  by  his  dis- 
guising the  potato  in  a  kind  of  soup  did  they  grate- 
fully accept  his  offering. 

"  Gerarde,  in  his  'Herbal,'  1597,  wrote  as  fol- 


THE  POTATO  519 

lows:  'Virginia  potato  hath  many  hollow,  flexible 
branches  trailing  upon  the  ground;  these  are 
square,  uneven,  knotted  or  kneed  in  sundry  places 
at  certaine  distances :  from  the  which  knots  cometh 
forth  one  great  leafe  made  of  divers  leaves,  some 
smaller  and  other  greater,  set  together  upon  a 
fat  middle  rib  by  couples,  of  a  swart  greene  colour 
tending  to  rednesse ;  the  whole  leaf  resembling  those 
of  the  Winter-Cresses,  but  much  larger;  in  taste 
at  the  first  like  grasse,  but  afterwards  sharp  and 
nipping  the  tongue.  From  the  bosome  of  which 
leaves  come  forth  long  round  slender  foot  stalkes, 
whereon  grow  very  faire  and  pleasant  floures, 
made  of  one  entire  whole  leafe,  which  is  folded  or 
plaited  in  such  strange  sort,  that  it  seemes  to  be  a 
floure  made  of  five  sundry  small  leaves,  which  can- 
not easily  be  perceived,  except  the  same  be  pulled 
open.  The  whole  floure  is  of  a  light  purple  colour, 
striped  downe  the  middle  of  every  fold  or  welt  with 
a  light  show  of  yellownesse,  as  if  purple  and  yellow 
were  mixed  together.  In  the  middle  of  the  floure 
thrusteth  forth  a  thicke  flat  point  all  yellow  as  gold, 
with  a  small  sharp  greene  pricke  or  point  in  the 
midst  thereof.  The  fruit  succeeds  the  floures, 
round  as  a  ball,  of  the  bigness  of  a  little  Bullesse 
or  wild  plunime,  green  at  the  first,  and  blacke  when 
it  is  ripe,  wherein  is  contained  small  white  seed 
lesser  than  those  of  mustard;  the  root  is  thicke,  fat, 
and  tuberous,  not  much  differing  either  in  shape, 
colour  or  taste  from  the  common  potatoes,  saving 
that  the  roots  hereof  are  not  so  great  nor  long;  some 
of  them  are  as  round  as  a  ball,  some  oval  or 
egge-fashion,  some  longer,  and  others  shorter; 
the  knobby  roots  are  fastened  unto  the  stalkes 
with  an  infinite  number  of  threddy  strings.  It 
groweth  naturally  in  Americus  where  it  was  first 


520  THE  POTATO 

discovered,  as  reporteth  Clusia,  since  which  time 
I  have  received  roots  hereof  from  Virginia,  other- 
wise called  Norembega,  which  grow  and  prosper 
in  my  garden  as  in  their  own  native  country. 
The  leaves  thrust  forth  of  the  ground  in  the  begin- 
ning of  May;  the  floures  bud  forth  in  August,  the 
fruit  is  ripe  in  September.  The  Indians  call  this 
plant  pappas,  meaning  the  roots;  by  which  name 
also  the  common  potatoes  are  called  in  those 
Indian  countries.  We  have  its  proper  name  men- 
tioned in  the  title  "Potatoes  of  Virginia."  Be- 
cause it  hath  not  only  the  shape  and  proportion  of 
potatoes  but  also  the  pleasant  taste  and  vertues 
of  the  same,  we  may  call  it  in  English,  Potatoes 
of  America  or  Virginia.'  '* 

The  potato  is  receiving  greater  attention  to-day 
than  ever  before  in  the  history  of  the  plant.  In 
the  countries  where  it  is  most  needed  for  food 
there  has  been  the  greatest  development  at  the 
hands  of  man.  Single  tubers  of  new  varieties 
in  England  have  sold  for  fabulous  prices,  and  new, 
improved  sorts  are  jealously  guarded  by  their 
originators. 

Growers,  Government  and  state  experimenters, 
and  other  scientific  men  —  in  all  countries  —  are 
now  working  for  varieties  that  will  produce  the 
greatest  possible  tonnage  of  the  highest  class  prod- 
uct, and  for  cultural  methods  best  suited  to  ac- 
complishing this. 


CHAPTER  XLII 

BOTANY,    PHYSICAL    AND    CHEMICAL    COMPOSI- 
TION   OF    THE    POTATO 

THE  potato  {Solanum  tuberosum)  belongs  to 
the  Solanum  or  Nightshade  family.  (Sola- 
men  is  a  Latin  word  meaning  soothing  or 
quieting.)  In  Bailey's  "Encyclopedia  of  Horti- 
culture," published  by  the  Macmillan  Company, 
New  York,  it  is  technically  described  as  follows : 

"Solanum,  giving  name  to  the  family  Solana- 
ceae,  is  a  vast  genus  of  temperate  and  tropical 
herbs,  shrubs  and  even  trees,  but  is  comparatively 
poorly  represented  in  temperate  North  America. 
Dunal,  the  latest  monographer,  in  1852  recognized 
901  species,  and  many  species  have  been  de- 
scribed since  that  time.  The  genus  finds  its  great- 
est extension  in  tropical  America.  Of  the  vast 
number  of  species  barely  25  are  of  much  account 
horticulturally,  and  half  that  number  will  com- 
prise all  the  species  that  are  popularly  well  known. 
One  of  these  is  the  Potato,  Solanum  tuberosum, 
one  of  the  leading  food  plants  of  the  human  race. 
The  genus  seems  to  abound  in  plants  with  toxic 
properties,  although  its  bad  reputation  in  this  re- 
spect is  probably  exaggerated. 

"As  a  genus,  Solanum  is  not  easily  separated 
from  other  genera,  but  some  of  its  most  desig- 
native  cliaracters  are  as  follows :  Leaves  alternate : 
inflorescence  mostly  sympodial  and  therefore  super- 

521 


522  THE  POTATO 

axillary  or  opposite  the  leaves:  corolla  gamope- 
talous  and  rotate  or  shallow-campanulate;  plaited 
in  the  bud,  the  limb  angled  or  shallow  lobed; 
stamens  usually  5,  inserted  on  the  throat  of  the 
corolla,  the  anthers  narrower  or  elongated  and 
connivent  and  mostly  opening  by  an  apical  pore 
or  slit:  ovary  usually  2-loculed,  ripening  into  a 
berry  which  is  sometimes  enclosed  in  the  persis- 
tent calyx.  The  flowers  are  white,  purple  or 
yellow.  The  species  are  herbs  in  temperate  cli- 
mates, but  in  warm  countries  many  of  them  are 
shrubby  and  some  are  small  trees.  Many  of  them 
are  climbers.  Two  species  bear  underground  tubers 
beside  the  tuberosum.  The  tuberosum  is  described 
as  follows: 

"'Low,  weak-stemmed,  much-branched  per- 
ennial with  tender,  herbaceous  tops,  and  per- 
petuating itself  asexually  by  means  of  thickened 
or  tuberous  underground  stems,  glabrous  or  pubes- 
cent-hirsute: leaves  are  unequally  pinnate;  the 
5-9  oblong-ovate  leaflets  are  interposed  with 
much  smaller  ones:  flowers  are  lilac  or  white,  in 
long-stemmed  dichotomous  clusters,  the  corolla 
prominently  lobed:  the  fruit  is  a  small  globular 
yellow  berry,  usually  not  produced  in  the  highly 
developed  modern  varieties.  It  is  a  native  of  the 
temperate  Andes  of  Chile  and  adjacent  regions. 
There  is  a  form  with  yellow-blotched  leaves 
(known  as  var.  variegatum)  sometimes  cultivated 
for  ornament.'" 

A  study  of  the  structure  and  composition  of  the 
potato  is  very  interesting.  Dr.  C.  F.  Langworthy, 
in  "Farmers^'  Bulletin  295  "  of  the  United  States 
Department  of  Agriculture,  gives  a  very  full 
and  comprehensive  description.     It  follows: 


THE  POTATO  523 

*'The  potato  tuber  is  in  reality  a  modified  stem, 
being  shortened  and  thickened  as  a  storehouse  for 
material  held  in  reserve  for  the  early  growth  of  new 
plants.  The  outer  skin  of  the  tuber  consists  of  a 
thin,  grayish  brown  corky  substance  and  corre- 
sponds roughly  to  the  bark  of  an  overground  stem. 
If  a  crosswise  section  of  a  raw  potato  is  held  up  to 
the  light  three  distinct  parts  besides  the  skin  may 
be  seen.  The  outermost  one  is  known  as  the  cor- 
tical layer  and  may  be  from  0.12  to  0.5  inch  in 
thickness.  This  layer  is  slightly  colored,  the  tint 
varying  with  the  kind,  and  turns  green  if  exposed 
to  the  hght  for  some  time,  thus  showing  its  rela- 
tion to  the  tender  green  layer  beneath  the  bark  of 
overground  stems.  It  is  denser  than  the  other 
parts  of  the  potato  and  contains  many  fibro-vas- 
cular  bundles,  especially  on  the  inner  edge  where 
a  marked  ring  of  them  plainly  separates  this 
layer  from  the  next.  The  interior  or  flesh  of  the 
tuber  is  made  up  of  two  layers  known  as  the  outer 
and  inner  medullary  areas.  The  outer  one  forms 
the  main  bulk  of  a  well-developed  potato  and  con- 
tains the  greater  part  of  the  food  ingredients.  The 
inner  medullary  area,  sometimes  called  the  core, 
appears  in  a  cross  section  of  the  tuber  to  spread  ir- 
regular arms  up  into  the  outer,  so  that  its  outline 
roughly  suggests  a  star.  It  contains  slightly  more 
cellulose  and  less  water  and  nutrients  than  the 
outer  medullary  portion.  These  four  parts  of  the 
tuber  are  shown  in  the  illustration. 

"As  in  all  other  plant  forms,  the  framework  of 
the  tuber  is  made  up  of  cellulose,  a  carbohydrate 
or  group  of  carbohydrates  familiar  in  many  forms, 
as,  for  instance,  the  fibre  of  cotton  or  linen  or 
the  bran  of  wheat.  In  food  and  feeding  stuff 
analyses  it  is  usually  designated  crude  fibre.     Cel- 


524  THE  POTATO 

lulose  forms  the  walls  of  a  network  of  cells,  which 
in  turn  form  the  body  of  the  tuber.  These  cells 
vary  in  shape  and  size  in  different  sections  of  the 
tuber  according  to  the  part  they  play  in  its  hfe. 
In  the  flesh  they  serve  mainly  for  storage,  and  in 
them  lie  the  starch  grains. 

"The  interior  of  the  tuber  is  more  or  less  per- 
meated by  water  in  which  are  dissolved  nearly  all 
the  soluble  ingredients,  including  the  various  soluble 
carbohydrates.  In  this  connection  it  is  well  to 
recall  that  the  carbohydrates  (cellulose,  starch, 
the  different  kinds  of  sugars,  etc.)  are  all  closely 
related,  and  that  under  the  influence  of  certain 
acids,  heat,  or  other  agency  an  insoluble  form, 
such  as  starch,  may  be  changed  into  a  soluble  form, 
or  vice  versa. 

"Cultural  varieties  of  a  given  plant  often  have 
very  different  habits,  appearance  and  quality, 
and  it  is  natural  that  the  amounts  and  propor- 
tions of  water,  carbohydrates,  fats,  protein  and 
mineral  matters  which  the  potato  contains  should 
vary  with  the  variety  as  well  as  with  the  character 
of  the  soil,  the  climate,  and  other  conditions  under 
which  it  grows.  Moreover,  since  the  needs  of  the 
potato  plant  vary  at  different  stages  of  its  develop- 
ment, it  will  provide  for  them  by  varying  the 
ingredients  stored  in  the  tubers  and  elsewhere. 
Taking  into  account  all  these  factors,  it  might 
seem  impossible  to  make  any  general  statements 
about  the  chemical  composition  of  the  potato,  but 
it  may  be  said  that  the  variations  are  in  degree 
rather  than  in  kind,  and  so  many  analyses  and 
studies  have  been  made,  both  in  this  country  and 
in  Europe,  that  the  average  or  general  character- 
istics of  the  potato  are  now  well  established.  The 
following  table  shows  the  composition  of  raw  and 


PROTEIN  2.2°fo 


CRUDE  FIBER,EJCfi.4 


ASHLOofo. 


FATO.I^ 


Composition   of   the   potato.     Tlie   shaded   jjortioii   represents   the 
average  loss  of  nutrients  when  boiled 


Transverse  and  longitudinal  sections  of  the  potato:  a,  skin;  b, 
cortical  layer;  c,  outer  medullary  layer;  J,  inner  medullary  area. 
From    Farmers'    Bulletin   21)5,    United   States    Department    of 


Agriculture 


THE  POTATO 


5^5 


cooked  potatoes  and  represents  the  average  of 
many  American  analyses.  For  comparison  the 
composition  of  white  bread  is  also  given. 


REF- 

WATER 

PRO- 

FAT 

CARBonvnRATr.s 

Asn 

FUEL 

Sugar, 

Crude 

VALUE 

KIND    OF     FOOD 

Per 
ct. 

Perct. 

Perct. 

Per  ct. 

Starch, 

etc. 
Per  ct. 

l-ibrc 
Per  ct. 

Perct. 

PF.R 
POUND 

Calories 

Potato,  aspuri-hascd 

20.0 

02. 6 

1.8 

0.1 

13.8 

0.9 

0.8 

310 

Potato,  edible  por- 

tion 

78.3 

2.2 

.1 

18.0 

.4 

1.0 

375 

Potato,  boiled 

75.5 

2.5 

.1 

20.3 

.6 

1.0 

440 

Potato,  mashed  and 

seasoned 

75.1 

2.6 

3.0 

17.8 

1.5 

505 

Potatoes  fried  in  fat. 

"Potato  chips" 

2.2 

6.8 

39.8 

46.7 

4.5 

2,675 

Potato,  evaporated 

7.1 

8.5 

.4 

80.9 

3.1 

1,680 

\Vhite  bread 

35.3 

9.2 

1.3 

52.6 

.5 

1.1 

1.215 

"The  corky  skin  of  the  potato  makes  np  about 
2.5  per  cent  of  the  whole,  and  the  cortical  laj^er 
8.5  per  cent.,  leaving  89  per  cent,  for  the  medul- 
lary areas.  Theoretically,  the  skin  is  the  only 
refuse  or  inedible  material  in  the  potato,  but  in 
practice  a  considerable  part  of  the  cortical  layer  is 
usually  removed  with  it. 

"The  edible  portion  of  the  potato  —  i.  e.,  the 
tuber  without  the  corky  skin  —  holds  on  an  average 
about  78  per  cent,  water,  and  so  onlj^  about  20 
per  cent  of  the  whole  tuber  has  a  direct  food  value. 

"The  illustration  shows  very  plainly  that  the 
l)ulk  of  the  potato  tuber  is  water.  The  stage  of 
growth  and  other  conditions  affect  the  proportion 
present,  young  tubers  being  more  juicy  or  watery 
than  those  which  are  fully  developed. 

"The  carbohvdratcs  are  bv  far  the  most  abun- 
dant  of  the  nutrients.  Of  the  18.4  per  cent,  less 
than  0.5  per  cent,  is  made  up  of  cellulose,  yel  one 


5W  THE  POTATO 

sometimes  hears  the  statement  made  that  potatoes 
are  mdigestible  on  account  of  the  large  quantities 
of  cellulose  which  they  contain.  In  reality  there  is 
as  much  or  more  in  almost  all  the  cereals  and  other 
vegetable  foods,  and  such  a  criticism  of  the  po- 
tato has  no  warrant  of  fact. 

"The  bulk  of  the  carbohydrates  which  the 
potato  stores  for  future  use  is  in  the  form  of  starch, 
which  is,  of  course,  insoluble  in  cold  water,  and 
small  quantities  of  such  soluble  carbohydrates  as 
dextrose,  sugar,  etc.  In  young  tubers  there  is  a 
larger  proportion  of  sugars  and  less  starch  than 
when  they  have  become  mature.  As  the  tuber 
lies  in  the  ground  the  starch  content  increases. 
When  it  begins  to  sprout,  however,  part  of  the 
starch  is  converted  by  a  ferment  in  the  tuber  into 
soluble  glucose.  Thus,  young  or  early  potatoes 
and  old  ones  both  have  a  smaller  proportion  of 
starch  and  more  soluble  sugars  than  well-grown  but 
still  fresh  tubers.  If  the  grated  potato  is  mixed 
with  water,  starch  falls  out  from  the  broken  cells  and 
settles  to  the  bottom  of  the  vessel,  and  may  be 
removed  in  the  form  of  a  white  deposit.  Starch 
is  manufactured  to  a  large  extent  from  potatoes 
by  methods  which  are  similar  to  the  above  in 
principle. 

*' Other  carbohydrates  in  the  potato  are  the  so- 
called  pectose  bodies,  the  substances  which  cause 
fruit  jellies  to  stiffen,  and  when  the  tubers  are 
large  and  pulpy  pectoses  may  make  up  4  per 
cent,  of  the  tuber,  though  they  usually  occur  in 
much  smaller  quantities.  They  are  believed  to 
have  about  the  same  food  value  as  starch. 

"Fat,  or  ether  extract,  appears  in  such  small 
quantities  in  potatoes  that  it  may  be  practically 
neglected  in  discussing  their  food  value,  especially 


THE  POTATO  527 

as  the  greater  part  occurs  in  the  inedible  skin  in 
the  form  of  a  wax-like  body. 

"The  protein  bodies  are  rather  scanty,  as  com- 
pared with  those  of  cereals  and  such  vegetables 
as  peas  and  beans.  Only  about  60  per  cent,  of 
the  total  amount  present  is  true  protein  —  that 
is,  in  a  form  which  can  be  used  for  the  building  and 
repair  of  body  tissue.  This  means  that  a  pound 
of  potatoes  furnishes  only  about  1.3  per  cent,  or 
0.2  of  an  ounce  of  true  protein,  and  emphasizes  the 
statement  already  made  that  potatoes  alone  make 
a  very  incomplete  diet,  as  the  proportion  of  ni- 
trogenous material  would  be  very  small  in  a  quan- 
tity sufficient  to  supply  the  body  with  all  the 
energy -yielding  material  required. 

"These  potato  proteids  have  been  studied  by 
the  Connecticut  Experiment  Station  and  found 
to  consist  of  a  form  of  globulin,  for  which  the  name 
'tuberin'  is  suggested,  and  a  proteose,  part  of 
these  nitrogenous  constituents  being  dissolved  in 
the  juice  and  part  stored  with  the  starch  in  the 
cells,  especially  in  the  cortical  layer. 

"The  nonproteid  forms  of  nitrogenous  sub- 
stances in  the  potato  are  asparagin  and  snuill 
quantities  of  amido  acids,  occurring  mostly  in  the 
juice.  If  they  have  any  food  value  it  is  indirect 
and  due  to  the  fact  that  they  protect  the  true  pro- 
teids from  waste  during  digestion.  It  is  possible 
that  they  may  aid  digestion  in  some  way  or  serve 
a  similar  purpose.  There  is  a  larger  proj)()rlion  of 
protein  compounds,  and  especially  of  the  more 
soluble  forms,  in  young  potatoes  than  in  old. 

"The  most  important  mineral  matters  found  in 
potatoes  are  potash  and  phosphoric  acid  com- 
pounds. There  are  several  organic  acids  (as  citric, 
tartaric  and  succinic  acid),  which  vary  in  tubers 


528  THE  POTATO 

of  different  ages  and  account  in  some  measure  for 
the  flavor  of  potatoes. 

"If  peeled  potatoes  are  exposed  to  the  air  the 
outer  surface  turns  brown,  just  as  does  the  flesh 
of  many  fruits.  Such  change  is  due  to  the  action 
of  enzyms  or  linorganized  ferments  naturally 
present  in  the  plants.  In  the  presence  of  the  oxy- 
gen of  the  air  they  work  upon  tannin-Hke  bodies  in 
the  tuber  or  fruit  in  such  a  way  that  the  latter 
change  color.  In  the  case  of  potatoes  this  brown- 
ing may  be  prevented  by  putting  the  peeled  tubers 
into  salted  water  or  even  into  cold  plain  water. 

"In  the  condition  in  which  they  are  purchased 
potatoes    resemble    such    succulent    carbohydrate 
foods  as  turnips  and  beets,  with  an  average  water 
content  of  90  per  cent.,  more  than  they  do  such  dry 
carbohydrate  foods  as  flour  or  rice  with  an  average 
of  12  per  cent.     The  condition  in  which  foods  are 
eaten  should  also  be  taken  into  account,  for  if  the 
value  of  a  food  is  judged  solely  by  its  chemical 
composition  as  it  is  found  in  the  market  a  wrong 
impression  may  be  obtained.     For  instance,  po- 
tatoes as  purchased  consist  of  one  fifth  and  rice 
of    seven  eighths    nutritive    material.     The    first 
inference  is  that  rice  is  more  than  four  times  as 
nutritious  as  potatoes.     In  one  sense  this  is  true  — 
that  is  to  say,  a  pound  of  uncooked  rice  contains 
more  than  four  times  as  much  nutritive  material 
as  a  pound  of  raw  potatoes.     But  if  we  take  about 
four  pounds  of  potatoes  —  that  is,  the  amount  nec- 
essary to  furnish  as  much  nutritive  material  as  the 
pound   of   rice  —  the   composition   and   nutritive 
value  of  the  two  quantities  will  be  just  about  the 
same,    while    from    a    pecuniary    standpoint    the 
advantage  would  be  on  the  side  of  the  potatoes. 
The  chief  difference  in  the  two  foods  before  cook- 


THE  POTATO  529 

ing  is  that  one  is  juicy  and  bulky,  while  the  other 
is  dry,  and  therefore  more  concentrated.  In  cook- 
ing rice  we  mix  water  with  it,  and  may  thus  make 
a  material  not  very  different  in  composition  from 
potatoes.  By  drying  potatoes  they  can  be  made 
very  similar  in  composition  and  iood  value  to  rice. 
Considering  the  two  articles  as  ordinarily  pur- 
chased, 4.5  pounds  of  raw^  potatoes  and  a  pound  of 
uncooked  rice  contain  nearly  equal  weights  of 
each  class  of  nutrients  and  have  about  the  same 
nutritive  value." 

The  manufacturing  processes  of  the  potato 
plant  are  described  in  "  Bulletin  71  "  of  the 
Wyoming  Experiment  Station,  as  follows: 

"In  order  to  understand  the  relation  of  the  leaves 
to  the  tubers  it  is  necessary  to  know  that  the 
starches  and  other  food  materials  which  are  stored 
up  in  the  tubers  are  produced  within  the  leaves 
through  the  activity  of  the  contents  of  the  leaf 
cells  when  influenced  by  the  action  of  light.  The 
leaves  are  green  because  the  cells  contain  the  green 
bodies  technically  known  as  'chloroplasts.'  No 
plant  w  hich  lacks '  chloroplasts'  is  capable  of  manu- 
facturing starch. 

"Leaf  structure  is  essentially  the  same  in  all 
plants.  A  section  from  the  upper  to  the  under 
side  will  show  on  either  side  an  epidermis  of  flat- 
tened, colorless  cells.  The  cells  innnediatly  under- 
neath the  upper  layer  are  elongated  and  closely 
packed  and  are  known  as  the  palisade  tissue. 
The  lower  half  of  the  leaves  contain  nearly  sj)herieal 
cells,  rather  loosely  arranged,  witli  c()nsj)icuous 
air  s])aces  near  the  lower  e])idermis.  Tliese  com- 
municate freely  with  the  smaller  spaces  among  the 


530  THE  POTATO 

cells,  and  are  continuous  one  with  the  other 
throughout  the  leaf.  The  air  spaces  are  in 
direct  communication  with  the  outside  air 
through  tiny  openmgs  known  as  stomata.  These 
openings  on  the  surface  often  occur  on  both  sides 
of  the  leaf,  but  in  most  crop  plants  they  are  more 
numerous  on  the  under  side,  or  may  be  entirely 
wanting  on  the  upper.  They  are  very  important 
to  the  plant,  since  it  is  through  them  that  the 
plant  food  derived  from  the  atmosphere  finds 
ingress  to  the  leaf,  which  is  really  the  plant's 
starch  factory.  They  also  serve  the  very  impor- 
tant function  of  allowing  the  escape  of  the  watery 
vapor  and  the  oxygen  which  is  released  during 
the  period  of  active  starch  formation.  Neces- 
sary^ as  are  these  openings  on  the  leaf  surface,  they 
are  also  sources  of  great  danger  to  the  plant.  The 
rest  of  the  surface  of  the  leaf  is  so  thickened  or 
waterproofed  with  the  substance  known  as  cutine 
that  water  cannot  enter  nor  escape  through  it, 
neither  can  germs  from  the  atmosphere  find  en- 
trance into  the  leaf.  When  germs  or  other  fungi 
secure  admission  to  the  tissues  of  the  plant  it  is 
usually  either  through  the  stomata  or  through 
wounds  upon  the  leaf  or  other  part  of  the  plant. 
It  is  for  this  reason  that  insect  attacks  are  so  often 
folio v.ed  by  fungous  and  germ  diseases.  Simi- 
larly wounds  which  plants  accidentally  receive  or 
which  are  made  by  pruning  are  also  often  followed 
by  diseased  conditions. 

"The  crude  sap  of  plants,  which  is  essentially 
the  soil  water  with  the  gases  and  soluble  minerals 
of  the  soil  dissolved  in  it,  is  taken  up  by  the  roots 
and  conveyed  through  the  stem  to  the  leaves. 
The  air  which  has  been  admitted  to  the  leaf 
through  the  stomata  supplies  the  carbon  dioxide. 


THE  POTATO  531 

From  these  ingredients,  throiioh  the  agency  of 
the  protoplasm  of  the  cell  and  the  'chloroplasts' 
acting  in  the  presence  of  sunlight,  starch  is  manu- 
factured. This  starch  is  temporarily  stored  in 
the  leaf,  but  at  night,  when  starch  formation  no 
longer  is  going  on,  the  starch  is,  through  the  action 
of  a  ferment,  converted  into  soluble  form  and  is 
transmitted  from  the  leaf  through  the  stem  to  the 
underground  stems,  which  become  gorged  with 
the  material  thus  received.  Another  ferment 
now  reconverts  this  soluble  form  of  starch  into 
the  insoluble,  which  is  then  deposited  in  the  tuber 
as  a  permanent  part  of  it.  The  ultimate  size  of 
the  tubers,  therefore,  depends  upon  the  amount  of 
starch  that  is  thus  formed  by  the  leaves  and  trans- 
mitted from  time  to  time  to  the  tubers  for  storage. 
'*It  seems  that  most  of  the  crude  sap  passing 
upward  in  the  stem  is  transmitted  through  ducts 
in  the  interior  tissue,  while  the  elaborated  sap  (as 
it  is  called  when  it  has  been  acted  upon  by  the 
leaf  and  is  in  condition  to  be  used  as  plant  food)  is 
conveyed  downward  close  to  the  exterior  of  the 
stem,  viz.,  in  the  interior  layers  of  the  bark.  It 
follows,  therefore,  that  any  injury  to  the  inner 
bark  or  any  artificial  obstruction  in  these  layers 
will  prevent  the  downward  movement  of  this 
elaborated  sap.  In  the  case  of  the  potato,  an  in- 
jury to  the  barkwill  prevent  theformation  of  tubers, 
as  the  sap  conveying  the  soluble  starch  can  no  lon- 
ger reach  them.  In  the  event  of  the  elaborated 
sap  being  left  in  the  above  ground  portions,  it  results 
either  in  very  marked  increase  in  the  size  of  leaf 
and  stem,  through  forced  feeding,  or  the  plant  will 
attempt  the  formation  of  tubers  above  ground." 


APPENDIX 


THE  WORLD'S  FOOD  PROBLEM 

The  most  important  problem  in  the  world  to-day  is  the 
future  food  supply  —  and  in  this  the  potato  is  an  important 
factor.  President  W.  C.  Brown  of  the  New  York  Central 
Lines  has  made  a  very  careful  study  of  the  agricultural 
situation  all  over  the  world,  both  as  it  concerns  the  pro- 
ducer and  consumer.  So  valuable  are  his  ideas  considered  that 
the  following  verj'  coj^ious  extracts  are  made  from  his  address 
at  the  annual  banquet  of  the  Rochester  (New  York)  Chamber 
of  Commerce,  March  18,  1910: 

"We  hear  much  of  the  subject  of  the  conservation  of  our 
natural  resources,  and  it  is  well  that  this  most  important 
subject  should  have  the  most  careful  consideration. 

"I  have  thought,  however,  that  about  90  per  cent,  of  the 
discussion  of  this  important  question  has  been  directed  to 
about  10  per  cent,  of  our  natural  resources. 

"  Husband  our  coal  as  we  will,  economize  in  its  use  to  the  last 
limit,  but  the  day  will  come  when  the  last  ton  will  be  mined 
and  nothing  will  remain  but  the  empty  holes  in  the  ground. 

*'The  same  is  true  of  all  the  products  of  our  mines;  but  the 
fertility  of  the  soil  cannot  only  be  maintained,  but  con- 
stantly augmented,  and  it  must  be,  if  this  nation  or  any 
other  nation  on  the  face  of  the  earth  is  to  continue  to  exist. 

"Broadly  stated,  the  great  mcrease  in  the  cost  of  living 
is  caused  by  the  simple  economic  fact  that  consumption  is 
rapidly  overtaking  production,  and  a  careful  analysis  of  the 
increased  price  of  farm  products,  as  compared  with  the  in- 
crease in  price  of  the  products  of  manufacture,  wmII  suggest 
the  wondermg  inquiry  how  it  has  been  possible  to  make  the 
reductions,  or  to  maintain  the  unchanged  or  slightly  increased 
prices  of  the  lattci*,  while  the  prices  oit  the  former  have  been 
moving  upward  so  rapidly. 

"These  figures  show  conclusively  that,  in  spite  of  the  fact 
that  the  great  increase  in  cost  of  these  prime  necessaries  of 
life  has  increased  the  cost  of  labor  more  on  the  average  than 
33  per  cent.,  these  great  manufactunng  companies  have  been 

£35 


536  APPENDIX 

able,  by  economics  in  administration,  operation  and  cost  of 
distribution,  to  keep  their  prices  down  substantially  to  the 
level  of  ten  years  ago. 

"Furthermore,  by  these  same  economics,  these  concerns 
are  year  by  year  increasing  their  sales  in  foreign  lands,  off- 
setting in  great  measure  the  loss  in  our  exports  of  food- 
stuffs, which  are  rapidly  diminishing  to  the  vanishing  point. 

"No  more  accurate  measure  of  fundamental  prosperity 
can  be  found  than  that  an  individual  or  a  nation  produces 
and  sells  more  than  he  or  it  buys  —  that  the  aggregate  of  all 
transactions  results  in  bringing  money  in,  rather  than  paying 
money  out;  and  here  occurs  another  sharp  and  significant 
contrast  between  the  products  of  agriculture  and  those  of 
mining  and  manufacture. 

"In  1899  we  produced  more  than  three  and  one  half 
billion  bushels  of  corn,  wheat,  rye,  oats  and  barley,  and,  in- 
cluding flour  and  cornmeal,  we  exported  something  more 
than  four  hundred  and  seventy  millions  bushel. 

"In  1909  we  produced  more  than  four  and  one  half  billion 
bushels  of  these  cereals,  but  our  exports  had  dropped  to  less 
than  one  hundred  and  thirty-four  million  bushels. 

"  In  other  words,  our  exports  of  these  products  of  the  farm 
in  1899  exceeded  those  of  1909  by  251  per  cent. 

"Our  exports  of  beef  and  its  products  for  1899  exceeded 
those  of  1909  by  72  per  cent.,  and  the  exports  of  the  products 
of  pork  in  1899  exceeded  those  of  1909  by  89  per  cent. 

"Coincident  with  this  falling  off  in  our  agricultural  ex- 
ports we  imported  in  1909  no  less  than  8,384,000  bushels 
of  potatoes,  3,355,000  bushels  of  beans  and  dried  peas,  and 
6,667,000  bushels  of  oats;  and  during  the  latter  part  of 
January  of  this  year,  notwithstanding  a  duty  of  25  cents  a 
bushel,  we  came  within  one  half  of  1  cent  per  bushel  of  im- 
porting wheat  from  England. 

"The  increase  in  corn,  wheat,  oats,  rye,  barley,  potatoes, 
hay,  buckwheat,  flaxseed,  rice,  and  cotton  for  1909,  over 
1899,  is  as  follows: 

Acreage 23  per  cent. 

Production 36  per  cent. 

Consumption 60  per  cent. 

"In  this  economic  evolution  we  are  not  following  an  un- 
trodden path.  Other  nations  have  been  confronted  with 
the  same  great  question,  'How  shall  we  be  fed  and  where- 


APPENDIX  537 

withal  shall  we  be  clothed?'  and  ujx)n  the  wisdom  with 
which  the  question  has  been  solved  has  hung  the  fate  of 
those  nations. 

"More  than  a  century  ago  the  production  of  wheat  in 
Great  Britain  had  gone  down  to  about  the  average  of  tliis 
country  to-day  —  viz.,  a  fraction  less  than  fourteen  bushels 
per  acre. 

"A  royal  commission  was  appointed,  which  has  been  in 
continual  active  existence  ever  since.  Tlie  yield  of  wheat 
was  gradually  brought  up  to  thirty-two  bushels  per  acre, 
and  at  that  figure  it  is  maintained  year  after  year. 

"The  story  of  this  campaign  for  imj)roved  agriculture  in 
England  is  exceedingly  interesting,  and,  in  the  present 
juncture,  of  profound  importance  to  this  country. 

"  The  islands  of  the  sea  have  been  swept  clean  of  their  rich 
stores  of  guano,  the  accumulation  of  ages.  Phosphates 
have  been  imported  by  the  millions  of  dollars'  worth  from 
the  United  States.  The  battlefields  of  Europe  were  combed, 
the  catacombs  of  Egypt  rifled,  and  for  years  the  bones  of 
three  million  men  were  ground  up  annually  and  used  to 
bring  the  soil  of  England  back  to  its  present  fertility. 

"Approximately  five  million  dollars'  worth  of  our  phos- 
phates are  being  exported  each  year.  In  some  way  this 
should  be  stopped.  In  the  years  to  come  this  master  fer- 
tilizer ^\nll  be  worth  more  than  gold. 

"I  believe  it  is  well  within  the  bounds  of  conservatism  to 
say  that  long  before  the  middle  of  the  present  century  the 
phosphates  which  we  export  annually,  and  for  which  we 
receive  five  million  dollars,  will  be  worth  five  hundred  million 
dollars  for  fertilizing  our  own  land. 

"It  is  safe  to  say  that  no  country  in  the  world  excels  the 
United  States  in  natural  fertility  of  soil,  or  has  a  more  favor- 
able general  climate. 

"Notwithstanding  these  natural  advantages,  with  our 
careless,  uninformed  methods  —  our  utter  want  of  method  — 
our  farms  |)roduce  an  annual  yield  of  less  than  fourteen 
bushels  of  wheat  per  acre,  as  compared  with  thirty-two  in 
England,  twenty-eight  in  Germany,  thirty -four  in  the  Nether- 
lands, and  twenty  in  France. 

"  We  produce  an  average  of  less  than  twenty-three  bushels 
of  oats  per  acre,  while  England  {produces  forty -two,  Germany 
forty-six,  and  the  Netherlands  fifly-tiiree. 

"Germany,  ^ith  an  arable  area  of  less  than  some  of  our 


538  APPENDIX 

largest  states,  produces  more  than  seven  times  the  number 
of  bushels  of  potatoes  that  are  produced  in  all  the  states. 

"  Experimental  farms  should  be  established  in  every  county 
of  every  state,  where  the  most  modern  methods  of  fertiliza- 
tion and  cultivation  and  the  result  of  such  methods  can  be 
demonstrated,  and  where  every  farmer  in  the  county  can 
see  exactly  how  it  is  done,  instead  of  being  told  in  books  or 
lectures  how  it  can  be  done. 

"The  marvelous  extension  and  development  of  railroads 
through  the  Middle  West  during  the  ten  years  following  the 
close  of  the  Civil  War,  opening  up  and  making  easily  ac- 
cessible empires  of  this  rich  land,  marvelously  stimulated 
emigration;  and  each  new  railroad,  each  extension  of  exist- 
ing railroads,  was  followed  by  the  location  of  thousands  of 
settlers  and  the  opening  up  and  cultivation  of  millions  of 
acres  of  new  land. 

"The  result  that  followed  was  inevitable.  The  products 
of  the  nation's  farms  soon  so  far  exceeded  the  demand  for 
them  that  prices  fell  far  below  the  bare  cost  of  production. 

"I  have  seen  as  good  corn  as  the  states  of  Iowa,  Kansas, 
and  Nebraska  ever  grew  sell  for  ten  to  twelve  cents  per 
bushel,  and  it  was  a  drug  on  the  market  at  that  price.  I  have 
seen  this  corn  burned  for  fuel  on  the  farm,  because  it  was 
cheaper  than  wood  or  coal. 

"Is  it  strange  that  such  conditions  resulted  in  a  ruinous 
collapse  in  farm  values  in  Pennsylvania,  New  York,  and  New 
England,  or  that  they  begot  methods  or  habits  of  unthrift 
and  improvidence  in  the  cultivation  of  the  soil  in  the  West? 

"These  conditions  prevailed  not  only  in  our  own  country 
but  abroad.  Railroads  were  being  built  in  Russia,  Australia, 
Argentina,  India,  and  New  Zealand,  and  cheap  land  with  its 
cheap  product  competed  in  every  market  on  the  globe. 

"Fifty-one  years  ago,  in  an  address  delivered  before  the 
Wisconsin  Agricultural  Society,  Abraham  Lincoln  said: 

"'My  first  suggestion  is  an  inquiry  as  to  the  effect  of  greater  thorough- 
ness in  all  departments  of  agriculture  than  now  prevails  in  the  Northwest; 
perhaps,  I  might  say,  in  America. 

'"What  would  be  the  effect  upon  the  farming  interests  to  push  the 
soil  up  to  something  near  its  full  capacity?  Unquestionably,  it  will  take 
more  labor  to  produce  fifty  bushels  from  one  acre  than  it  will  to  produce 
ten  bushels  from  the  same  acre;  but  will  it  take  more  labor  to  produce  fiftj 
bushels  from  one  acre  than  from  five? 

" '  Unquestionably,  thorough  cultivation  will  require  more  labor  to  the 
acre;  but  will  it  require  more  to  the  bushel? 


APPI:NDIX  539 

"'If  it  should  rcfiuire  just  as  mucli  to  the  bushel,  there  are  some  prob- 
able, and  several  certain,  advantages  in  favor  of  thorough  practice. 

"'It  is  probable  it  would  develop  those  unknown  causes  which  of  late 
years  have  cut  down  our  crops  below  their  fornu'r  averages. 

"'The  thought  rei'urs  lliut  education,  cuilivati'il  thouf^hl,  can  best  be 
combined  with  agriculture  labor,  or  any  labor,  on  the  principle  of  thorough 
work,  and  thorough  work  again  renders  sufficient  the  smallest  quantity  of 
ground  to  each  man,  and  this  again  conforms  to  what  mu.st  occur  in  a  world 
less  inclined  to  war,  and  more  devoted  to  the  arts  of  peace,  than  heretofore. 

'"Population  must  increase  rajjidly,  more  rajjidiy  than  in  ft)rmer  times, 
and  ere  long  the  most  valuable  of  all  arts  will  be  the  art  of  deriving  a  com- 
fortable subsistence  from  tlie  smallest  area  of  soil. 

"'No  community  whose  every  member  possesses  this  art  can  ever  be 
the  \'ictim  of  oppression  in  any  of  its  forms.  Such  community  will  be  alike 
independent  of  crowned  kings,  money  kings,  and  land  kings.' 

"These  words  of  Mr.  Lincoln  could  not  have  appealed 
very  strongly  to  the  farmers  of  Wisconsin  or  the  neighboring 
states  when  land  and  its  products  were  about  the  cheapest 
thing  in  which  men  dealt. 

"Why  expend  money  or  especial  effort  to  increase  pro- 
duction when  the  most  indifferent  farming  produced  more 
than  could  be  used  and  the  surplus  in  many  cases  would  not 
bring  the  bare  cost  of  production?  WTiy  spend  money  in 
building  up  and  enriching  the  soil  when  for  two  thousand 
miles,  from  the  ^Iississi])])i  to  the  Pacific,  land  as  rich  and 
fertile  as  the  best  on  earth  could  be  had  for  the  asking. 

"Fifty  years  later  this  admonition,  under  the  changed 
conditions,  comes  with  the  force  and  significance  of  proph- 
ecy, because  it  applies  now  to  a  vital,  burning  queslion  in 
which  lie  the  issues  of  national  life  or  death. 

"When  these  words  were  spoken,  and  for  thirty  years 
following,  production  exceeded  consumption,  and  there  was 
a  steady,  continuous,  heart-breaking  decline  in  the  values 
of  the  thing  produced. 

"Now,  and  for  ten  years  pa.st,  consumption  is  overtaking 
production  with  alarming  rapidity,  and  values  are  rising  by 
leaps  and  bounds. 

"Then,  increased  consumption  could  be  provided  for  by 
increased  acreage;  now,  this  is  impossible.  Increased  con- 
sum])tion  can  only  be  met  by  increased  production  on  sub- 
stantially our  present  acreage. 

"Then,  the  outlook  for  agriculture  was  dark  and  almost 
hopeless,  the  market  was  limited,  prices  low,  and  the  ten- 
dency was  always  down.  Now,  the  market  is  unlimited  at 
liberal  and  steadily  advancing  prices." 


540  APPENDIX 

POTATO    STATISTICS 

The  world's  production  of  various  food  crops  for  1908  is  as 
follows : 

Bushels 

Potatoes 4,927,576,000 

Corn 3,478,328,000 

Wheat 3,176,479,000 

Barley        .  - 1,267,561,000 

Rye 1,587,733,000 

A  comparison  between  potatoes  and  rice  given  in  pounds: 

Pounds 

Potatoes 334,431,840,000 

Rice 135,186,068,000 

The  Year  Book  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  gives 
the  potato  crop  of  the  principal  potato-growing  countries  as 
follows : 

(No  statistics  for  Switzerland,  Portugal,  Argentina,  Trans- 
vaal, Egypt  and  some  other  less  important  potato-growing 
countries.) 

North  America                               Year  1904  Year  1908 

Bushels  Bushels 

United  States 332,830,000  278,985,000 

Mexico 527,000  469,000 

Newfoundland 1,350,000  1,350,000 

Canada 55,436,000  74,746,000 

Total 390,143,000  355,550,000 

South  America 

Chile 6,131.000  8,063,000 

Europe 

Austria-Hungary 520,461,000  639,407,000 

Belgium 91,632,000  82,846,000 

Denmark 24,214,000  29,752,000 

Finland 15,465,000  20,432,000 

France 451,039,000  375,000,000 

Germany 1,333,326,000  1,702,803,000 

Italy 29,000,000  29,000,000 

Malta 733,000  692,000 

Netherlands 94,421,000  96,695,000 

Norway 17,253,000  28,030,000 

Roumania 3,001,000  4,310,000 

Russia  (European)..  .  .  893,908,000  1,060,135,000 

Servia 718,000  645,000 

Spain 84,000,000  84,000,000 

Sweden 51,314,000  78,020,000 


APPENDIX  541 

POTATO  STATISTICS  —  continued 

Year  1!)04  Year  1908 

Eurooe  IJushels  Bushels 

Great  Britain 13;5,!)(i  1.000  146,iS.JH,000 

Irt-land 98.035,000  119,4oj,000 

(Total  Great  Britain 

and  Ireland) (232,596,000)  (265.713,000) 

Total 3,843,081,000  4,497,480,000 

Asia 

Japan 11,274,000  21,023,000 

Russia  (Asiatic) 18,800,000  22,588,000 

Total 30.074,000  43,011,000 

Africa 

Algeria 1,655,000  1,803,000 

Cape  of  Good  Hope...  1,942,000  1.304,000 

Natal          451,000  405,000 


Total 4,048,000  3,512,000 

Australasia 

Australia 16,777,000  14,021,000 

New  Zealand 7,795,000  6.339,000 


Total 24,572,000  19,360,000 

Grand  Total 4,298,049.000  4.927,576,000 

A  comparison  of  the  total  value  with  that  of  other  1900 
crops  in  the  United  States  is  interesting: 

Acreage  Production  Value 

Potatoes 3,52.5,000  376,537,000  206,545.000 

Com                       108,771,000  2,772,376,000  1,652,822,000 

Wlieat 46,723,000  737,189,000  730,046,000 

Oats                      33.204,000  1,007,353,000  408,174,000 

Barley                7,001,000  170,284,000  93,971,000 

Rye  2,006,000  32,2,'59,000  23,809,000 

Buckwheat 834,000  17,438.000  12,188.000 

Rice 720,225  24,368,000  19,341,000 

While  of  increasing  importance  in  the  United  States,  there 
are  other  crops  that  outclass  it  here.  Tiiis  is  due  to  the  fact 
that  this  is  one  of  the  great  grain-producing  countries  of  the 
world,  and  tliat  the  potato  industry  is  capable  of  almost 
unlimited  expansion  here.  In  Europe  its  relative  importance 
is  very  much  greater  than  in  the  United  States.  A  resume 
of  the  potato  industry  in  the  United  States  from  1866  to 
1909  shows  the  increase  in  its  importance  and  volume: 


542  APPENDIX 

Acreage,  Production,  Value,  Prices,  etc. 


Aver. 

Imports 

Year 

Acreage 
planted  and 

Average 
yield  per 

ProductioH 

farm 
price 

Farm  value 
Dec.  ist 

during 
fiscal  year 

bai^ested 

acre 

per  bu. 

begiining 

Dec.  I 

July  I 

1866 

1,069,000 

100.2 

107,201  000 

47.3 

50,723,000 

193,265 

1867 

1,192,000 

82.0 

97,783,000 

65.9 

64,462,000 

209,555 

1868 

1,132,000 

93.8 

106,090,000 

59.3 

62,919,000 

138,470 

1869 

1,222,000 

109.5 

133,886,000 

42.9 

57,481,000 

75,336 

1870 

1,325,000 

86.6 

114,775,000 

65.0 

74,621  000 

458,758 

1871 

1,221,000 

98.7 

120,462,000 

53.9 

64,905,000 

96,259 

1872 

1,331,000 

85.3 

113,516,000 

53.5 

60,692,000 

346,840 

1873 

1,295,000 

81.9 

106,089,000 

65.2 

69,154,000 

549,073 

1874 

1,310,000 

80.9 

105,881,000 

61.5 

65,223,000 

188,757 

1875 

1,510,000 

110.5 

166,877,000 

34.4 

57,358,000 

92,148 

1876 

1,742,000 

71.7 

124,827,000 

61.9 

77,320,000 

3,205,555 

1877 

1,792,000 

94.9 

170,002,000 

43.7 

74,272,000 

528,584 

1878 

1,777,000 

69.9 

124,127,000 

58.7 

72,924,000 

2,624,149 

1879 

1,837,000 

98.9 

181,626,000 

43.6 

79,154,000 

721,868 

1880 

1,843,000 

91.0 

167,600,000 

48.3 

81,062,000 

2,170,372 

1881 

2,042,000 

53.5 

100,145,000 

91.0 

99,291,000 

8,789,860 

1882 

2,172,000 

78.7 

170,973,000 

55.7 

95,305,000 

2,362,362 

1883 

2,289,000 

90.9 

2(^,164,000 

42.2 

87,849,000 

425,408 

1884 

2,221,000 

85.8 

190,642,000 

39.6 

75,524,000 

658,633 

1885 

2,266,000 

77.2 

175,029,000 

44.7 

78,153,000 

1,937,416 

1886 

2,287,000 

73.5 

168,051,000 

46.7 

78,442,000 

1,432,490 

1887 

2,357,000 

56.9 

134,103,000 

68.2 

91,507,000 

8,259,538 

1888 

2,533,000 

79.9 

202,365,000 

40.2 

81,414,000 

883,380 

1889 

2,648,000 

77.4 

204,881,000 

35.4 

72,611,000 

3,415,578 

1890 

2,652,000 

55.9 

148,290,000 

75.8 

112,342,000 

5,401,912 

1891 

2,715,000 

93.7 

254,424,000 

35.8 

91,013,000 

186,871 

1892 

2,548,000 

61.5 

156,655,000 

66.1 

103,568,000 

4,317,021 

1893 

2,605,000 

70.3 

183,034,000 

59.4 

108,662,000 

3,002,578 

1894 

2,738,000 

62.4 

170,787,000 

53.6 

91,527,000 

1,341,533 

1895 

2,955,000 

100.6 

297,237,000 

26.6 

78,985,000 

175,240 

1896 

2,767,000 

91.1 

252,235,000 

28.6 

72,182,000 

246,178 

1897 

2,535,000 

64.7 

164,016,000 

54.7 

89,643,000 

1,171,378 

1898 

2,558,000 

75.2 

192,306,000 

41.4 

79,575,000 

530,420 

1899 

2,581,000 

88.6 

228,783,000 

39.0 

89,329,000 

155,861 

1900 

2,611,000 

80.8 

210,927,000 

43.1 

90,811,000 

371,911 

1901 

2,804,000 

65.5 

187,598,000 

76.7 

143,979,000 

7,656,162 

1902 

2,966,000 

96.0 

284,633,000 

47.1 

134,111,000 

358,505 

1903 

2,917,000 

84.7 

247,128,000 

61.4 

151,638.000 

3,166,581 

1904 

3,016,000 

110.4 

332,830,000 

45.3 

150,673,000 

181,199 

1905 

2,997,000 

87.0 

260,741,000 

61.7 

160,821,000 

1,948,160 

1906 

3,013,000 

102.2 

308,038,000 

51.1 

157,547,000 

176,917 

1907 

3,128,000 

95.4 

298,262,000 

61.8 

184,184,000 

403,952 

1908 

3,257,000 

85.7 

278,985,000 

70.6 

197,039,000 

■8,383,969 

1909 

3,525.000 

106.8 

376,537,000 

54.9 

206,545,000 

APPENDIX 


543 


The  variation  in  price  is  wortliy  of  notice,  and  the  fact 
that  the  average  yield  ])er  acre  is  practically  the  same  now  as 
forty  years  ago  shows  the  possiy)ilities  of  advanced  work  and 
methods.  The  acreage  hjvs  been  increasing  gradually  with 
the  development  of  the  country. 

The  annual  iini)orts  from  Europe  bear  a  direct  relation  to 
the  total  home  ])roduction. 

The  acreage,  prodiiclion,  and  value  of  potatoes  in  the 
United  States  in  1909  follow: 

State,  territory  or  division                         Acreage  Production  Dec™  bc^'ist 

Maine ISO.OOO  29,250,000  $13,748,000 

New  Hampshire 21,000  2,730,000  1,747,000 

Vermont 30,000  4,650,000  2,046,000 

Massachusetts 34,000  4,250,000  3,358,000 

Rhode  Island 6,000  750,000  600,000 

Connecticut 36,000  4,320,000  8,580,000 

New  York 438,000  52,560,000  26,280,000 

New  Jersey 80,000  7,200,000  5,904000 

Pennsylvania 305,000  23,790,000  15,404,000 

North  Atlantic 1,080,000  129.500,000  72,733,000 

Delaware 9,000  864,000  622,000 

Maryland 35,000  2,800,000  1,848.000 

Virginia 60.000  5,520,000  3.804,000 

West  Virginia 39,000  3,822,000  2,599,000 

North  Carolina 25,000  1,850,000  1.498,000 

South  Carolina 9.000  765.000  880,000 

Georgia 10,000  810,000  810,000 

Florida 5,000  475,000  570,000 

South  Atlantic 192.000  16,906,000  12,691,000 

Ohio 182,000  16,920,000  9.479,000 

Indiana 95.000  9.025,000  4.093.000 

Illinois 164,000  14,924,000  9.104,000 

Michigan 348,000  36,540,000  12,789,000 

Wisconsin 262,000  20,724,000  10,155,(K)0 

N.C.E.  of  Miss.  River. .               1,051.000  104,139,000  46,220.000 

Minnesota 160.000  18.400.000  6,440,000 

Iowa 145,000  12,905,000  7,098,000 

Missouri 88,000  7,4SO,0()0  5.012,01)0 

North  Dakota 40,000  4,4(M),(i(>0  1.9(18,000 

South  Dakota 50,000  4,000.(KK)  2,520.tK)0 

Nebraska 105,000  8,190.000  4.914,000 

Kansas 91,000  7,189,000  5.(;79,OO0 

N.C.W.  of  Miss.  River.                   679,000  62,564.000  33,643.000 


544  APPENDIX 

State,  territory  or  division  Acreage  Production  K^'™  Value 

December  1st 

Kentucky 40,000  3,680,000  2,355,000 

Tennessee 30.000  2,250,000  1,598,000 

Alabama 17,000  1,360,000  1,333,000 

Mississippi 9,000  783,000  744,000 

Louisiana 16,000  1,200,000  1,092,000 

Texas 60,000  3,000,000  3,180,000 

Oklahoma 27,000  1,890,000  1,796,000 

Arkansas 33,000  2,310,000  2,215,000 

South  Central 232,000  16.473,000  14,223,000 

Montana 25,000  4,500,000  2,295,000 

Wyoming 10,000  1,600,000  1,008,000 

Colorado 65,000  10,400,000  5,928,000 

New  Mexico 1,000  85,000  86,000 

Utah 15,000  2,700,000  1,161,000 

Nevada *.  . .  3,000  540,000  459,000 

Idaho 25,000  5,000,000  2,400,000 

Washington 41,000  6,970,000  3,276,000 

Oregon 46,000  7,360,000  4,416,000 

California 60,000  7,800,000  6,006,000 

Far  Western 291,000  46,955,000  27,035,000 

United  States 3,525,000  376,537,000  206,545,000 

It  will  be  noted  that  the  states  rank  as  follows : 

New  York 52,560,000  bushels 

Michigan 36,540,000       " 

Maine 29,250,000       " 

Wisconsin 26,724,000       " 

Pennsylvania 23,790,000       " 

The  importance  given  Idaho,  Colorado,  California,  and 
other  Western  states  in  this  book  is  because  of  the  quality 
of  their  product  and  the  possibilities  in  developing  and  en- 
larging the  industry. 

The  average  production  of  wheat  and  potatoes  in  different 
countries  covering  a  period  of  ten  years  is  given : 

AVERAGE   YIELDS    EN    BUSHELS    PER   ACRE    1899-I908 


U.S. 

European 
Russia 

Germany 

Austria 

Great 
Britain 

France 

Potatoes 

W'heat 

89.8 
13.7 

98.4 
9.3 

197.3 

28.7 

151.4 

18.7 

186.4 
32.6 

118. 
20.4 

APPENDIX 


545 


The  best  averages  for  states  for  1009  are  as  follows: 

Maine iiS  Bushels  per  acre. 

Idaho 200 

Montana 180 

Nevadu 180 

Utah 180 

Washington 170 

Colorado I(i0 

Oregon IGO 

Wyoming 160 

Vermont 155 

New  Hampshire 130 

California          130 

Massachusetts 125 

Rhode  Island 125 

Connecticut 120 

New  York 120 

Michigan 105 

Wisconsin 102 

Florida 95 

Kansas 79 

Pennsylvania 78 

Louisiana 75 

Oklahoma 70 

Texas 50 


The  production  of  potatoes  in  every  state  in  the  Union 
can  and  must  be  greatly  increased.  This  can  be  done  by 
the  use  of  better  methods,  and  it  is  the  duty  of  every  citi- 
zen of  the  commonwealth  to  do  every  thing  possible  to  bring 
about  the  desired  result. 


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